Serena hit only 13 winners to Keys’ 17 but had fewer unforced errors – 24-32 – and converted five of her six break-point opportunities.
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“It pretty much rained non-stop and then they flipped the schedule around so I didn’t feel that comfortable coming on to court”.
It was the third 3-set match he had played leading up to the final, and amid the challenging circumstances of intermittent rain, it did not take long for nerves to fray.
Britain’s Andy Murray said pride at becoming a new father may have given him the edge as he stunned world number one Novak Djokovic to win his maiden Rome Masters title.
“I didn’t ask to postpone the match”, Djokovic explained later.
For Williams, it was her fourth title in Rome and puts her in position to defend her title at Roland Garros.
Djokovic saved a first set point but on the second Murray followed up a thunderous forehand with a drop shot victor.
Murray’s serve was the bedrock of his win, and he hit his forehand with huge power to run Djokovic to all corners of the court and seized his opportunities when they came.
The Serbian got the break in the second game, only for Nishikori to level at 4-4.
Their routes to the final couldn’t have been more different; Murray cruised through his rounds without dropping a set, while Djokovic had to negotiate a quarterfinal against clay king Rafael Nadal and a marathon semifinal against Japanese star Kei Nishikori.
British number one Andy Murray reached his first Italian Open final with a straight-set victory over unseeded Frenchman Lucas Pouille.
“We played on a very heavy court, it had been raining for an hour it was very muddy behind the baseline and I nearly twisted my ankle three times”. The match time was less than an hour.
The two-time Grand Slam champion dominated proceedings from start to finish and ensured he will compete in his first-ever Rome Masters final with a 6-2, 6-1 win in a rain-affected match that only lasted a minute shy of an hour. He advanced to the final when Argentine opponent Juan Monaco withdrew because of injury.
Against Murray, however, Pouille’s luck ran out. “Any time you get the chance to play the best players, especially right before a slam, is great preparation [for the French Open]”.
Latest case of that was Rome Masters where he found himself one set down on two occasions before eventually making it to the final.
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“It will be wonderful”, Serena said.
