Serena Williams Beats Victoria Azarenka to win US open

NEW YORK -- What's a U.S. Open without a little Serena Williams drama? This time it was contained to the court.

Two points from defeat after pulverizing the field for two weeks, Williams capped a dominating summer and earned player-of-the-year bragging rights by beating No. 1 Victoria Azarenka on Sunday in the U.S. Open final 6-2, 2-6, 7-5.

Fourth-ranked Williams, who won singles and doubles titles at Wimbledon and the London Olympics, needed her full mental reserves to claw back from a 3-5 the final-set deficit to win her fourth championship in New York and 15th overall major.

It was the first women's final to go the distance since 1995. At 2 hours and 18 minutes it was the longest in time duration since 1981.

Reigning Australian Open champ Azarenka refused to bow and played bold tennis after Williams raced to an early lead. The 23-year-old from Belarus served for the match at 5-4.

But Williams locked in to her mental toughness, breaking back and winning the last four games and bringing the 23,771 fans in Arthur Ashe Stadium to their feet.

When Azarenka's final backhand sailed long Williams fell to her back fully extended, dropped her racket and covered her face with her hands. She leaped several times in the air on her way to shake hands at the net.

"Oh my god," said Williams in her on-court speech. "I honestly can't believe I won. I really was preparing my runner-up speech, because I thought, 'Man, she's playing so great.' "

After coming back from nearly a yearlong absence in June 2011 from a series of injuries and medical scares, including two foot surgeries and a hematoma in her stomach, the American is playing some of her best tennis.

Williams became the first woman to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in the same year since, well, she did it in 2002.

Pretty good highs after some pretty rough lows.

"I don't think about the downs too much," she said. "I hope I never think about them as my life continues. But I really think a champion is defined not by their wins but by how they can recover when they fall.

"I have fallen several times. Each time I just get up and I dust myself off and I pray and I'm able to do better or I'm able to get back to the level that I want to be on."

She won her very first major championship at age 17 at the 1999 U.S. Open. Winning titles 13 years apart at the same Grand Slam tournament represents the longest span of success in the professional era, which began in 1968. Navratilova (Wimbledon, 1978 and 1990) and Chris Evert (French Open, 1974 and 1986) had the longest previous spans of 12 years.

She turns 31 this month -- she's the first 30-year-old woman to win the U.S. Open since Navratilova in 1987 -- but shows no sign of slowing down.

"I cannot believe that she will lose her motivation," said Patrick Mouratoglou, who runs a tennis academy outside of Paris and who started working with Williams on an informal basis after she lost in the first round of the French Open. "She really feels she can win every tournament. This feeling keeps her motivation."

Since that loss in the French Open, Williams is 26-1, including the Wimbledon title and the Olympic gold medal.

"I was miserable after that loss in Paris. I have never been so miserable after a loss,"Williams said. "I pulled it together. ... Sometimes, they say, it's good to lose."

Williams, who didn't drop a set in New York until the final, promised to be on her best behavior after tirade-marred exits in her last two trips to New York.

Called for a foot fault in the third game of the second set on Sunday -- the same infraction that sent her into a profanity-laced tirade in an ugly 2009 semifinal defeat -- Williams didn't flinch (though she did glare at the linesman on her walk back to the changeover chair).

"Yeah, this is the first year ... in a long time I haven't lost my cool," Williams said. "I think everyone thought about last year. That's never on my mind, because I was just focused. I was just thinking, 'OK, which foot was it?' So I would know not to do that again."

At 5-5 in the deciding set, Williams even applauded her opponent after a precisely angled backhand passing shot.

Azarenka, who will remain No. 1 in the world despite the loss, won the Australian Open in January during a 26-match winning streak to open the season.

"Serena deserves the win. She showed how true of a champion she is," Azarenka said. "I definitely gave it all today. Stepping out of this court today, I will have no regrets."

Azarenka hadn't dropped a three-set match all season until Sunday, going 12-0 in matches that went the distance, including victories over defending U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur in the quarterfinals and 2006 champion Maria Sharapova in the semifinals.

Williams improved to 10-1 against Azarenka. With 15 major titles, she is in sixth place and trails Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert by three.

"I never thought I would even come close to breaking those records," she said. "But if I can play consistently and play some more matches at Wimbledon, then it will be awesome. We'll see. If I could win two a year it would be great."

Azarenka would not be surprised to see that happen.

"For me she is the greatest player of all time," Azarenka said. "She took the game to the next level."

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Day 4 - Serena Williams [USA] (4) v. Elena Vesnina [RUS]

Serena Williams United States of America Elena Vesnina Russia
This is the first meeting between Serena Williams and Elena Vesnina. Aside from Williams’ sheer power on the court, all her experience in Grand Slams and in matches under the bright lights of a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium will serve her well. Additionally, Williams has only lost in the second round of a Slam once, in her Grand Slam debut at the Australian Open in 1998, when she was 16. This is Elena Vesnina’s third US Open appearance in the main draw, and it marks the first time she has advanced to the second round of play here. Her best performance at a major came in her first Slam ever at the 2006 Australian Open, where she made the fourth round. Williams should have an easy time against the 22-year-old Russian as long as she keeps her focus throughout the match. She easily dispatched Bondarenko in the first round because she maintained concentration and didn’t commit too many unforced errors. Facing the two-time US Open champion will be a challenge for Vesnina, but if she has a solid service game and is able to rattle Williams early with some well-placed winners, she may be able to break down Williams’ confidence. Williams enters this year’s Open with extra drive after losing to sister Venus in the final of Wimbledon. Aside from that loss, she was beaten by Jelena Jankovic in the quarterfinals of the 2008 Australian Open and was upset by Katarina Srebotnik in the third round of Roland Garros. When Williams has played in all four Grand Slams during the course of a year, she has not left the year without a Grand Slam championship trophy since 2001. She has something to prove at this year’s Open. Vesnina had a rocky few months in the beginning of the year, seeing her ranking slip from a career-high No. 41 in 2007 to her current rank of No. 71. But she has had some success as of late, beating two top-20 players at tournaments in Miami and Amelia Island. She also has been a part of the Russian Fed Cup Team, which beat the USA in April, and she represented Russia in the 2008 Olympics. For Williams to continue to advance through the tournament, it’s important that she keeps her early-round matches as error free as possible to keep her confidence up. If all goes well, Williams has a relatively easy draw through the fourth round until the quarterfinals, when she meets sister Venus, who has always been her toughest opponent. In the match against Vesnina, watch for Serena to make as many clean plays as possible. Vesnina should try to make Williams work hard for every point. Vesnina’s strength is her ability to execute well-placed shots. She is comfortable playing at the baseline and at net, but she must keep her serve consistent in order to stay in the game. Though she hasn’t advanced as far as she would have liked in her past three Slams this year, Serena has been completely dominant on the circuit this year. After a quarterfinal exit at the Australian Open, Serena went on to win her next three events at Bangalore, Miami and Charleston. Her performance this season launched her back into the top-five players in the world with a No. 4 overall ranking. In her first-round match at this year’s Open against Julia Vakulenko of the Ukraine, Vesnina lost the first set but dominated the 80th-ranked player in the final two sets to take the match, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, proving Vesnina’s resolve in the face of a challenge. In that match, she only had a 55 percent first-serve percentage, and she double faulted six times. She’ll need a better service game against Williams to advance. For Williams, playing in Arthur Ashe Stadium with a hometown crowd behind her always gives her a boost, and it can be overwhelmingly intimidating for inexperienced opponents. On the flip side, for inexperienced opponents facing popular American players at night in Arthur Ashe, the pressure can be intense. Some opponents crumble under the lights, while others take the opportunity to rise to the occasion. For Vesnina, regardless of whether she wins or loses this match, the experience will test her mettle and will help her prepare for big matches as her career progresses.

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U.S. Open looks ripe for a Williams takeover

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Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times

After teaming up for doubles gold in the Beijing Olympics, Serena, left, and Venus Williams could face each other in the U.S. Open quarterfinals.

Serena Williams is ranked No. 3, Venus Williams No. 8, and in a jumbled and depleted women's field, one of the sisters could find a path to the title.

NEW YORK -- As the 7-train screeches into the Shea Stadium/National Tennis Center stop, the year's last tennis Grand Slam says hello with quite the goofy billboard shouting from out the right-side window.

It's Maria Sharapova pitching cameras, and while sticklers and other malcontents might point out that a torn rotator cuff means Sharapova won't actually, you know, play this U.S. Open, maybe the sign actually sort of works.

English made, Yellow White Pink Orange Green black blue two colour

Ever since May, four months after Sharapova had won the Australian Open and some had howled at the moon about a possible Sharapova Slam, the women's game has become a strange brew of hodgepodge and mishmash.

If its Grand Slam year ends on a U.S. Open lacking both its defending champion and its billboard girl, well, that's probably apt.

The 2007 French and U.S. champion Justine Henin, perched at No. 1, retired stunningly in May. Sharapova entered the French Open as No. 1 but lost in the fourth round, whereupon Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic or Svetlana Kuznetsova could've snared the spot, which Ivanovic did.

Ivanovic came to Wimbledon and lost in the third round, whereupon Sharapova, Jankovic or Kuznetsova could've overtaken her, but none could. Jankovic finally did overtake her in early August, but Ivanovic since has overtaken Jankovic. Neither No. 1 Ivanovic nor No. 2 Jankovic nor No. 3 Serena Williams nor No. 4 Kuznetsova nor No. 5 Sharapova has won a tournament since the French.

If you think all of this hints it should be time for You Know Who and her younger sister You Know Who, you wouldn't be a nut case.

"I'm all about results and wish everyone the best of luck," Venus Williams, ranked No. 8, said Saturday, "but I'm really down with me winning this tournament, so . . . "

She didn't finish the sentence because the room busted up laughing, but her outlook achieved plausibility. It seems surely inaccurate -- but it's not -- that not one Williams has graced the last five U.S. Open women's singles finals.

Ever since Serena Williams, then 20, beat Venus Williams, then 22, in the 2002 final to portend Williams finals from there to eternity, Venus has reached one quarterfinal and one semifinal while having to withdraw twice, and Serena has reached two quarterfinals while having to withdraw once. Venus beat Serena in the fourth round in 2005, Henin beat both in 2007, both open 2008 Tuesday, and a disagreeable draw means they would meet in a quarterfinal.

With jet lag still wrathful from the trip from the Beijing Olympics, where the sisters won the gold medal in doubles, and with Venus saying she can't remember the day and Serena saying she hasn't adjusted as well as Venus, the draw peeved them not.

"Yeah, I have to get there first," Serena said, "and maybe I'll just go study, see what went wrong at Wimbledon," where she lost the final to Venus. "Hopefully I can rectify it."

They reiterated their plan to play for years and years -- "We're playing too well to think about the end," Venus said -- and they spoke of regaining Nos. 1 and 2, although Venus deadpanned, "That's the plan, but I don't think either of us is aiming for 2," which again broke up the room.

As it happens, Venus has remained at No. 8 since her repeat title at Wimbledon, but Serena's name has navigated the hodgepodge to No. 3 behind Ivanovic and Jankovic, who epitomizes a weary tour.

Jankovic's body seems to have protested her penchant for playing often, and when she spoke of the Olympics, where she reached the quarterfinals, she spoke of injections.

"I really tried my best," Jankovic said. "And I was taking the injections so I don't feel the pain when I was going on, you know, to play my matches. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to go on court and play. But now . . . it's finished, and now it's just a matter of, you know, getting, you know, firm again, getting all these muscles back and feeling like I used to feel before when I was fit and ready to play."

Beneath the mishmash does lurk one constant, if you'll look to No. 7 in the rankings. There's Dinara Safina, who turned up in Berlin in May ranked No. 17 and known for her talent but also wiring that sometimes short-circuited.

She won in Berlin, reached the final at the French, won in Carson and Montreal, reached the final in Beijing, conquered 10 different top-10 players along the way, belongs among the favorites especially in this shaky climate, and reminds that sports can be mysterious.

"Somehow I started to go out there and started to believe I'm a player and I can compete with them," she said. "Maybe before it was missing, this. And then I could not give them answers, but now I go out there and for their game I can always give them my answer, my game. . . . That's why I start to beat them."

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Serena Williams

"It's definitely encouraging to know I can bounce back. I haven't been down a set for a while," ... "It's the kind of practice I need"

Serena Williams rallies to defeat 15-year-old qualifier

HER BANK DEBUT IS A THREE-SET WIN

By Darren Sabedra
Mercury News

Article Launched: 07/17/2008 01:35:06 AM PDT

Click photo to enlarge

Serena Williams returns the ball against Michelle Larcher de... (Nhat V. Meyer / Mercury News)

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Bay Area tennis fans waited years for Serena Williams to make her Bank of the West Classic debut. Wednesday night, they got more of a show than any of them expected.

Michelle Larcher de Brito, a 15-year-old qualifier from Portugal, pushed the eight-time Grand Slam champion from start to finish in a surprisingly tense match at Stanford's Taube Family Tennis Stadium. But Williams overcame her young opponent's quickness and deceptive power to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Williams, the tournament's top seed, will play No. 5 seed Patty Schnyder or Alisa Kleybanova in Friday's quarterfinals.

"I never underestimate anyone, especially when they play me," Williams said after the 1-hour, 46-minute match. "It's like they always want to bring out their best game. In a way it was surprising. But you've just got to deal with it."

The level of play hardly resembled a midweek match. With the players' shrieks and grunts echoing throughout the stadium, the crowd of 2,628 rose to its feet when Williams ended a lengthy rally late in the third set with an amazing forehand winner.

Larcher de Brito had just chased down a shot and appeared to have saved a break point. But Williams, 26, ran the ball down and ripped a winner to the open court. That break point gave Williams a 4-2 lead. She held serve the next game and then closed out the match with another break.

"She's Serena Williams; I had nothing to lose," said Larcher de Brito, who is 8-8 this year and 19-16 as

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a pro. "I really don't think she expected me to play that well. I was having fun. I was enjoying it."

Williams finished with 14 aces and one double fault. Though Larcher de Brito displayed effective power from the baseline, she wasn't quite as strong with her serve. She had only one ace and six double faults.

Williams was playing her first WTA tour match since she lost to sister Venus in the Wimbledon final July 5. It was supposed to be easy, given that Williams is ranked fifth in the world and Larcher de Brito is No. 226.

But Larcher de Brito quickly is showing that she could be a future star. Last year in Miami, she became the seventh-youngest player to win a singles match in a main draw when she defeated Meghann Shaughnessy.

This week, Larcher de Brito had to win three qualifying matches and an opening-round match for an opportunity to face Williams.

"If she plays the way she plays against me, she'll be a great player," Williams said.

It was obvious from the outset that intimidation would play no role in this match. Chasing down one shot after another, Larcher de Brito broke Williams' serve three times to win the opening set.

Williams seemed in command of the first set when she won four consecutive games after losing the first two. But Larcher de Brito won the next four and then opened the second set by winning the first two.

"I started off really well," Larcher de Brito said. "I think I played pretty good throughout the whole match. But I just slowed down a little bit."

On the verge of one of the biggest upsets of the year, Williams got back on serve in the third game of the second set and took the lead with another break in the seventh game.

"It was definitely encouraging to know that I can bounce back," Williams said. "I haven't been down a set in a while. It's the type of practice I need."

Earlier in the day, Daniela Hantuchova became the third seeded player to lose this week, falling to Ai Sugiyama 6-3, 6-1.

No. 2 seed Anna Chakvetadze, the tournament's defending champion, advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Shahar Peer.

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