Kerber got the better off Karolina Pliskova in a tight three-set affair, score reading 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 to win the final Grand Slam of the year.
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Moreover, with the victory in the final, Kerber becomes the first German since Steffi Graf in 1996 to win the US Open title. The change is due both to Kerber’s win and to Williams’ shocking loss to Pliskova in the semi-finals, a match that ended her 186-week streak atop the rankings.
In the end, when Pliskova upset Williams in the semifinals, Kerber was guaranteed to be No. 1 when the next rankings come out Monday.
Kerber won the toss and elected to receive, perhaps for two reasons: Her serve remains the biggest question mark in a game otherwise full of answers, and it made sense to force Pliskova to deal with an early test of nerves.
But she fought back in the third set and wore down the towering Czech, who started to wilt in the punishing conditions, hunching over her racket at the end of nearly every point. Serena, the youngest of the Williams sisters, was in the 1st place since February 18 2013 when she replaced Belarusian Victoria Azarenka.
“This is also special that she is German”. I will try to take this challenge, because it will be a little bit new situation for me. Compared to the other girls what I have played in this tournament, they are missing so much the returns, but she’s not. But, yeah, there is nearly every Grand Slam different victor except those two with Angie.
Kerber said she has no plans to spend big off of her $3.5 million paycheck – the biggest in tennis.
“I’m ready to have this pressure on my shoulder, because I think I get used to all of this, especially after my first Grand Slam in Australia”, said Kerber. “I won my second grand slam in one year”.
The 24-year-old, who made her debut in the top 10 last year and beat Kerber last month in Cincinnati, had never made it past the third round of a Grand Slam tournament before her finals appearance.
It was the Swiss player’s first NY title, following his breakthrough 2014 Australian Open triumph and last year’s Roland Garros crown. “I mean, all the dreams came true this year”. The Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd roared and Kerber celebrated by raising her right hand and wagging her index finger in the air as she took the opening set.
Stan Wawrinka became the oldest US Open mens champion in 46 years when he defeated world number one Novak Djokovic to claim a third Grand Slam title, on Sunday.
“I was really trying to improving a lot of things”, Kerber said.
It also put Pliskova into the finals of a Grand Slam for the first time ever, where Kerber, her incredible conditioning, and her defensive, decisive style of play were waiting. She’ll always remember the 2011 U.S. Open as “the turnaround” of her career.
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“I can not play 30 times across the net”.
