Serena Williams won her second French Open title on Saturday, 11 years after her first triumph, defeating title-holder Maria Sharapova 6-4, 6-4 in a brief, but high-quality final.
It was the 31-year-old American’s 16th Grand Slam title win, taking her to within two of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova who are tied for fourth on the all-time list.
And it underscored her near total domination of the women’s game, having won three of the last four Grand Slam titles — at Wimbledon, the US and French Opens — and reaching the quarter-finals at the Australian Open.
For Sharapova it was a 10th straight loss to her American nemesis dating back to 2004 when she defeated her in the Wimbledon final and the WTA Championships when she was just 17-years-old.
In what was the first French Open women’s final involving the two top seeds since 1995, the two biggest names and biggest earners in women’s sport were pitted against each other for the 16th time, the third in a Grand Slam final.
Williams was the strong favourite, having won 13 times for two defeats against the Russian and stormed into the final for the loss of just one set, taking her career-best winning streak to 31.
Sharapova though was on a 13-match win run at Roland Garros, having finally come to terms with the demands of claycourt tennis last year when she defeated Sara Errani in the final.
Williams opened up with a sequence of brutal service returns that had Sharapova scampering from side to side and within minutes 0-40 down.
But the tall Russian served her way out of trouble and then showed her aggressive intentions by breaking Williams in the next game.
Sharapova had two points for a 3-0 lead, but Williams started to find her range again to break back and was soon on level terms at 2-2.
She broke again to lead 3-2 and suddenly she looked in command of a match that had started so brightly for Sharapova.
The crowd tried to lift the title-holder, who was seeking her fifth Grand Slam title and second at Roland Garros, and she did manage to get back on level terms briefly at 4-4 with Williams bothered by the gusting wind.
But the American produced her best tennis of the match in the next game with some big hits down both flanks and then held serve to take the first set in 51 minutes.
Sharapova saved five break points to start the second set, but two games later she struggled again on serve and this time Williams converted her first break point to put herself in the clear at 4-2.
She then comfortably served out twice, with three aces to conclude with, to gleefully banish 11 years of frustrations at Roland Garros.
At 31 years, 247 days she is the oldest women in the Open Era to win the French Open title, taking over from Chris Evert who set the previous mark in 1986.
Serena facts
Born in Saginaw, Michigan, on Sept. 26, 1981. (Age 31)
Turned professional in September 1995.
16 GRAND SLAM SINGLES TITLES
Australian Open 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010; French Open
2002, 2013; Wimbledon 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012; U.S. Open
1999, 2002, 2008; 2012
Williams is sixth on the list of female grand slam title winners. One of only five women, after Maureen Connolly, Margaret Court, Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf, to hold all four grand slam titles at the same time. The non-calendar year achievement in 2002-03 was dubbed the ‘Serena Slam’. She beat her older sister Venus in each of the four finals.
Has also won 13 women’s grand slam doubles titles with Venus and has four Olympic gold medals: singles (2012), doubles (2000, 2008, 2012).
At the 2009 US Open, Williams was fined $175,000 and placed on a two-year probation for unsportsmanlike behaviour in her semi-final loss to Kim Clijsters.
Missed the US Open in 2010 because of medical complications after cutting her foot on glass while celebrating her win at Wimbledon.
In 2011, had surgery after a life-threatening blood clot was detected on her lung. Made the U.S. Open final but lost to Australia’s Samantha Stosur.
Saturday’s French Open final win extended her winning streak to 31 matches.
She is the fourth woman, since tennis turned professional in 1968, to win each major at least twice after Chris Evert, Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
