Two days after struggling with her emotions on her competitive return to the BNP Paribas Open , Serena Williams was in a much more relaxed mood on Sunday as she powered her way into the fourth round . The American world No 1 , who made a nervous start before battling past Romania 's Monica Niculescu 7-5 7-5 in her opening match , was back to business as usual with a 6-2 6-0 demolition of Kazakhstan 's Zarina Diyas . ' I was able to relax because I was able to do more of the right things and not make as many mistakes as I did in my last round , ' said Williams , who boycotted the Indian Wells event for 14 years after winning the 2001 final . Serena Williams made short work of Zarina Diyas , winning 6-2 , 6-0 to reach the Indian Wells fourth round . Diyas , of Kazakhstan , had little answer to the play of world No 1 Williams . ' I think with that , that helped me to be able to relax even more . It definitely felt back to normal out there . Just trying to feel the rhythm and trying to focus on the ball more than anything else . ' Williams , a 19-times grand slam singles champion , had been apprehensive and ' a little nervous ' after finally deciding to return to Indian Wells after such a long time away . Fourteen years ago , she was booed by the crowd as she beat Kim Clijsters in the final to win her second title at the California desert resort , where her father Richard Williams alleged he had heard racist taunts . The heckling by the crowd was in apparent response to Serena 's sister Venus having withdrawn from their semi-final that year just minutes before the match , citing injury . Williams believes that , despite an impressive performance against Diyas , there is more to come . Diyas hits a forehand as she tried in vain to get a foothold in the match against Williams . Williams said she felt more relaxed and back to normal against Diyas than she did against Monica Niculescu . Williams and Diyas congratulate each other at the net after the match came to a swift end . On Friday , however , Serena received a standing ovation before the start of her match against Niculescu , an experience she described as 'amazing ' . Asked what her father and sister Venus had said to her after her opening match , Serena replied : 'They just said , 'Good job . ' They were both really proud . 'The standing ovation was amazing . I really felt excited by it . I think it 's been a really great learning experience for everyone involved . Williams was overwhelmed by the reception she got from crowd on her return to Indian Wells after 14 years . Williams was given a standing ovation during her game against Niculescu on Friday . 'It was what it was , but I have kind of like really tried to zone into tournament mode and tournament focus . That 's what I 'm just trying to get ready for the rest of the event . ' Against the outclassed Diyas , Williams looked every inch a world No 1 , though she felt she still had some way to go before she reached her optimum tournament level . ' I feel like I can do a lot better in terms of just being mentally prepared and mentally ready , ' said the 33-year-old . 'That 's what I 'm just going to try to do ... is just keep going . ' Next up for Williams is Sloane Stephens , who beat two-time major champion Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-6 ( 4 ) , 1-6 , 6-4 .
Serena Williams beat Kazakhstan 's Zarina Diyas 6-2 , 6-0 on Sunday . Williams was impressive in victory but says she 'can do a lot better ' The world No 1 will play fellow Indian Sloane Stephens in fourth round .