Serena Williams and her 13 Grand Slam titles Part IV
The last part of this series will focus on the last three Grand Slams won by Serena Williams, as well as a conclusion to the feature. The first three parts summed up ten of Serena’s 13 Grand Slam wins, namely the Australian Open
in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2009; the French Open in 2002, Wimbledon in 2002 and 2009, and the US Open in 1999, 2002 and 2008.
Grand Slam Number 11: 2009 Wimbledon
This is, without a doubt, one of the most epic matches played between the two sisters. Serena Williams managed to improve her second set score to 6-2 and defeated her elder sister Venus Williams in the Grand Slam finals with a
final score line of 7-6(3), 6-2. However, Serena Williams almost didn’t make it to the final of the All England Club event – she narrowly squeezed through her semi-final round against Women's Tennis Association pro, Elena Dementieva, who seemed to be on fire
during her match against Serena.
The two sisters have played against one another in a total of eight Grand Slam finals, and their win-loss record at the Majors is 6-2, with the advantage going to Serena. They have both been ranked World No. 1, and matches between
them are always intense. The two Williams sisters are the only women in the history of the Open Era of tennis to face each other four consecutive times in Grand Slam finals.
Grand Slam Number 12: 2010 Australian Open
Serena Williams and Justine Henin had participated in a total of 25 Grand Slams before the 2010 Australian Open took place. Surprisingly enough, the two players never faced each other before this year, at the event Down Under.
Henin had just come out of retirement, and her first tournament had been the 2010 Brisbane International where she had been given a wild card. She lost the event’s title match to Kim Clijsters. Her next tournament was the Australian Open, where she was issued
another wild card as an unranked player. Henin pushed Serena down to a tie breaker round, but Serena brought on her A-game and defeated Henin with a score line of 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. This was the fifth Australian Open event won by Serena. It is no wonder that the
American pro is the reigning champion for both singles and women’s doubles at the Melbourne tournament.
After this tournament, Serena sustained a leg injury which forced her to pull out of five straight tournaments. These included the Premier Mandatory Sony Ericsson Open in Key-Biscayne and the Premier 5 Dubai Tennis Championships.
Grand Slam Number 13: 2010 Wimbledon
This Wimbledon match is rated as one of the best finals ever played by Serena throughout her career. The Former World Number 1 was at her very best, and seemed to float effortlessly from one end of the court to the other. She scored
an easy straight sets win over Vera Zvonareva. The Wimbledon final was the first title match which Vera Zvonareva participated in. With her defeat, Serena Williams scored her thirteenth Grand Slam title as well as her fourth win at the All England Club. In
addition to this, the victory pushed her ahead of tennis legend, Billie Jean King on the list of all-time Grand Slam title winners.
This year, the WTA has missed the participation of Serena Williams due to her recovery from a foot injury. She has also withdrawn from the 2011 Hopman Cup, and will not be defending her Australian title in 2011. However, the tennis
wonder has confirmed that she plans to play mixed doubles at the 2011 Italian Open with Rafael Nadal. The tennis world will no doubt welcome her back into the fray with open arms.
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