"It's wonderful to have women's tennis here. It's been too long, it's the first time in 22 years," the top seed and world number 12 said in a courtside interview.
"It's my first time in Taiwan, so thank you for making me feel so welcome and thank you for making me feel at home," Williams added after defeating the tournament second seed.
Williams's 49 career titles, including seven grand slam singles championships, leave her seventh on the all time list as she closes in on Monica Seles (53) and Lindsay Davenport (55).
Martina Navratilova leads the way on 167 titles, while Williams' younger sister and current world number one Serena, who pulled out of the Dubai Championships this week with flu, has 69.
(Writing by Patrick Johnston in Singapore; Editing by John O'Brien)
