After earning a bye in the first round, sixth-ranked Venus Williams breezed through her second-round match at the Rogers Cup in Montreal on Wednesday.

The American dominated her opponent Barbora Strycova 6-3, 6-0, needing just 58 minutes to complete the encounter.

"It was definitely more straightforward than some of our other matches," said Williams, who is off to the Olympic Games in Rio following the Rogers Cup. "I'm never happy with my matches. Even an easy scoreline is never enough. But it's about figuring out how to win instead of playing perfect."

The seven-time Grand Slam champion gave up a mere 10 points in the second set, which she completed in 24 minutes.

The only hiccup for Williams was the seventh game of the first set. Up 4-2, the 36-year-old had her serve broken by Strycova, but she followed up with a break of her own.

"I just needed to stay focused," said Williams. "A 4-4 is definitely different than a 5-3. But it wasn't necessarily a turning point, because there are matches where I've been down and came back, and vice versa, so you realize that the match isn't over until it's over."

Williams will next face Madison Keys, who topped fellow American Madison Brengle 6-4, 6-3.

Meanwhile Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Alla Kudryavtseva 7-5, 6-0, and Johanna Konta got past Vania King in straight sets 7-5, 6-1.

Earlier in the day, fourth-seed Agnieszka Radwanska downed Monica Niculescu 6-1, 7-5.

Romanian Simona Halep, one of the tournament favourites, beat Daria Gavrilova in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 to set up a meeting with Karolina Pliskova.

The 14th-ranked Pliskova jumped into the third round after her second-round opponent Sara Errani was forced to retire with neck stiffness.

Also, Roberta Vinci came from behind to defeat fellow Italian Camila Giorgi 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.