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Serena Williams gets a scare before advancing in the U.S. Open

Serena Williams reacts after winning a point against Kiki Bertens. (AP)
Serena Williams reacts after winning a point against Kiki Bertens. (AP)

NEW YORK – This should have been an easy afternoon for Serena Williams. The No. 1 player in the world faced No. 110 Kiki Bertens, a 23-year-old who had earned a bid to the main draw by advancing through the qualifying tournament.

Williams had the crowd on her side. She even came in more rested, as she had played just 30 minutes in the first round.

And yet, the 21-time Grand Slam champion had to fight for every point in the first set. Bertens broke her in the third game to take a 2-1 lead in the first set, then held serve to 3-1. Williams eventually forced a tiebreak, but Bertens jumped to a 4-0 lead there.

Then, finally, Williams started playing her best tennis. She rallied to take the tiebreak (7-5) and the set. She earned a break midway through the second set to go up 3-2. She held to 4-2. That was all the edge she needed, as she went on to close the match 7-6, 6-3.

Williams never makes it easy on herself. She's her own worst enemy in the early rounds, where she can sometimes even seem bored. Maybe she just creates the challenge to give herself a bit of a warm-up for the more-heated later rounds. Whether intentional or not, she let the first set on Wednesday afternoon become another battle.

"It definitey didn't worry me," she said on court after the match. "I think being down a lot, I know I can try to make a comeback."

Asked how she is handling the pressure of going for the calendar Grand Slam, she said, "I don't know, I've been really relaxed usually. Today I was a little tight, I think it showed, but hopefully I can get back to where I was before."

Wednesday's win is Williams' 50th of the season. She'll face fellow American Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the third round.

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Danielle Elliot is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Find her on Twitter and Facebook.