Posted on 01/26/2007 9:22:15 PM PST by jazzo
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Serena Williams won her eighth and most improbable Grand Slam title, overwhelming top-seeded Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-2 in the Australian Open on Saturday.
Only the second unseeded woman to win the Australian title in the Open era, Williams came into the tournament ranked No. 81 after spending most of last season on the sidelines because of a knee injury.
"I'm really enjoying this!" said Williams, who will jump to No. 14 next week.
It was her first title in 15 tournaments since winning the 2005 Australian Open, and the most dominating win in a completed championship match at Melbourne Park since Steffi Graf beat Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario 6-0, 6-2 in 1994.
Williams finished off Sharapova with a backhand winner, then threw her racket in the air and dropped onto her back on the court.
The 25-year-old American, also the 2003 champion, got up and skipped over to the side of the court, swapping high-fives with mother Oracene Price and other people in the stands before jogging back onto court with her arms up in triumph.
"I'd like to thank my mom. I was a bad student this fortnight," Williams said. "I yelled at her, said some things under my breath. But she just kept coming. I really appreciate it."
Williams dedicated the title to her half-sister, Yetunde Price, who was shot to death in 2003.
"Most of all I would like to dedicate this win to my sister, who's not here. Her name is Yetunde. I just love her so much," she said, her voice cracking. "I'll try not to get teary-eyed but I said a couple of days ago, if I win this it's going to be for her. So thanks Tunde."
Chris O'Neill, who was ranked No. 111 when she won the 1978 title, was the only other unseeded woman to win an Australian Open.
Sharapova had no answers to Williams' power in her worst loss in a Grand Slam tournament.
"You can never underestimate her as a performer. ... I know what she's capable of and she showed that today," said Sharapova, who will assume the No. 1 ranking from Justine Henin. "She has showed it many, many times.
Williams saved match points in her semifinal win over Sharapova here two years ago before beating Lindsay Davenport in the final.
Williams started aggressively and never relented in the kind of form that helped her dominate women's tennis as she completed the "Serena Slam" with four consecutive majors up to the 2003 Australian Open.
She held to open and then won 12 straight points after Sharapova had a game point in the next to jump to a 4-0 lead. Williams saved a break point in the fifth game before Sharapova held at love to make it 5-1.
Williams served out, taking the first set in 26 minutes on her second set point when Sharapova sent a backhand service return wide.
The American broke Sharapova's serve and resolve again to open the second set, then had consecutive double-faults to give the 19-year-old Russian a break point chance in the next game. In a manner typical of her determined performance Saturday, Williams fired an ace to save the break point and held on back-to-back errors by Sharapova.
Williams led 4-0 before Sharapova held again, avoiding the most lopsided women's final ever in the Australian Open.
Serving for the match, Williams fired two aces to earn triple match point, then finished it off in 1 hour, 3 minutes with the backhand winner.
With occasional showers and a strong wind outside, the roof was closed on packed Rod Laver Arena.
Williams missed nine tournaments immediately after losing in the third round at the Australian Open last year and played only 16 matches in 2006, when she slumped as low as No. 140 in the rankings.
Despite only having three matches at a low-key warmup tournament in Hobart, she had was fit enough to advance over five seeded players.
Her win over No. 5 Nadia Petrova in the third round was her first over a top-10 player since she won the 2005 tournament.
Sharapova came into the match on a 13-match winning streak in Grand Slams, having won the U.S. Open last September.
After winning her first-round match in three sets over Camille Pin of France, Sharapova didn't drop a set in five rounds before the final.
In the men's final Sunday, top-ranked Roger Federer is aiming for a 10th major title against Grand Slam final newcomer Fernando Gonzalez.
Gonzalez overpowered Tommy Haas 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 in the semifinals Friday, a night after Federer beat No. 6 Andy Roddick 6-4, 6-0, 6-2.
"He's the No. 1 player in the world by far. ... I lost many times with him," Gonzalez said. "But now I'm playing much better than the last time we played. And it's only one match. I'm going to give everything that I have to try to win my first Slam."
Gonzalez is 0-9 against Federer, who has won nine of his 10 major finals.
Federer's victory over Roddick put him into a seventh consecutive Grand Slam final, tying a record set in 1934 by Jack Crawford.
If so..... Serena blew it.
I fell asleep before the match came on. Sounds like Maria took the choke as she is making a habit of doing at the end of important tournaments.
Well.......... you can't have everything.
;-)
You really ought to get out more.
No one suggested that Serena should "jump the net".
LOL
Where do people learn how to read?
The etiquette of tennis for decades has been to immediately come to the net, embrace (or shake hands with) the opponent, and then go about being self-congratulatory.
Serena blew it.
Besides she couldn't have made it over the net anyhow.
;-)
Is that a picture of Wesley Snipes????? Do they test for steroids in tennis????
Then after briefly enjoying the moment she went to where her family was including her mom and high fived them without leaving the playing field.
Both players were gracious.
I found it hard to believe that Serena blew off Maria at the net. It's good to hear that she did the right thing.
I always thought that she was a very nice girl. As I noted earlier, I did not see the match.
Be well .......... and thanks again. I'm very glad you told me that. I would not have liked to go through the next years having a poor impression of Serena.
You know what I wish, I wish the Gods of tennis would get together and give Maria Sharapova (and others) six month or a year to cut out all the screeching and grunting on the court. If I were playing against someone like that, I would consider it a major distraction.
I grew up in the 50's and 60's. No one had to make a sound when they hit the ball in tennis. Something should be done. All that noise is absurd and unneeded.
See Post 13.
Sharapova is like Katerina Witt before the fall of the Berlin Wall. No matter what Katerina said or did, even if she came across as a dyed-in-the-wool Commie, a red-blooded American male would have overlooked everything except her looks. ;-)
She's Baaaaack!!!!
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