Bank of the West Classic 2014: Serena Williams recovers to win in Stanford and put Wimbledon wobble behind her

Williams was knocked out in the third-round at SW19 before abandoning her campaign in the doubles with her sister Venus Williams

Serena Williams of the USA and Angelique Kerber of Germany hold up their trophies after Williams won the finals of the Bank of the West Classic (Getty Images)

Serena Williams got back to winning ways after her grand slam disappointments by claiming the Bank of the West Classic.

The world number one was playing her first tournament since a third-round exit at Wimbledon which came hot on the heels of a second-round loss at Roland Garros.

And she was made to battle in the first set of the final in Stanford as third seed Angelique Kerber took her to a tie-break but Williams prevailed.

The 32-year-old was not at her best as she took just four of her 12 break points in the match but eventually came out on top to win 7-6 (7/1) 6-3 in an hour and 19 minutes.

The victory was Williams' fourth of the season following triumphs in Brisbane, Miami and Rome and will provide a boost ahead of the US Open which begins on August 25.

PA