Williams appeared to brand Grigor Dimitrov “the guy with the black heart” two years ago, leading Sharapova to hit out at the American’s then-relationship with her coach.
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Serena hasn’t lost to a top-10 player at a major since 2011, when she fell to No. 9 Marion Bartoli in the fourth round of Wimbledon and No. 10 Samantha Stosur in the final of the U.S. Open.
When all Serena Williams had to do was stand and watch poker-faced while Maria Sharapova banged down two double faults in a row to surrender the first game of their Wimbledon semi-final a sense of inevitability descended over Centre Court. “Whenever you play someone that has beaten you before, you get really focused”.
Williams now has 17 consecutive wins over Sharapova and 27 straight victories in Grand Slam matches, her last loss coming in Wimbledon’s third round past year.
Serena is a dominant 20-4 in Grand Slam finals, 14-2 against players she isn’t related to by blood. If Williams beats Muguruza, she’ll own six Wimbledon titles, she’ll have completed three-fourths of a calendar slam, and she’ll hold 21 grand slam titles. At age 17, Sharapova beat Williams twice in 2004, including in the Wimbledon final – and hasn’t defeated her since.
World number one Serena Williams and unheralded Spaniard Garbine Muguruza will slug it out for the Wimbledon title after taking contrasting paths to Saturday’s final. It’s also a rematch for Williams, who was upset by Muguruza in the second round of the 2014 French Open.
In short, she’s had more success than Sharapova. “I don’t need any titles to make it”, added the 20-times grand slam singles champion, who trails only Margaret Court (24) and Steffi Graf (22) in the list of major winners. You have to be able not just to produce your best tennis but more.
The second set was closer as Sharapova ditched all caution and came out swinging, but when Williams broke for a 3-2 lead, the outcome seemed inevitable.
“So I think it doesn’t start here”.
But it’s not all negative – looking back at the entire fortnight, this was Sharapova’s second time making the quarterfinals or better here in the last nine years, going along with the 2011 final, and by virtue of the result she’ll now move back up to No. 2 on both the WTA Rankings and the Road To Singapore leaderboard, the journey to the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by South Carolina Global.
“They’ve seen this play before; they know how it ends”, ESPN’s Chris Fowler said while noting the crowd’s apparent lack of enthusiasm.
Muguruza booked her inclusion by beating Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, overcoming six straight games lost in the middle of a match far more absorbing than the one which followed. She was like, “Okay, she’s playing good”.
“She begins every interview with ‘I’m so happy”.
“I don’t think you’re ever going to hear nice words from him about me”.
A relieved Muguruza converted her first match point with a big serve and forehand drive-volley to become Spain’s first female finalist since Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in 1996.
“It took me a little while”, said Williams, when asked how long it was before the US Open popped into her head.
At deuce in the final game, Radwanska held up her racket in the middle of the point to challenge a backhand from Muguruza that landed near the baseline.
Had Radwanska not challenged, she would have won the point as the Spaniard had continued playing and hit her next shot out.
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“She’s a really good player, she obviously has what it takes”.
