Serena was pushed hard by Kerber in a high-quality clash lasting 81 minutes on Centre Court, but the German fourth seed eventually crumbled under a barrage of 39 winners and 13 aces from the defending champion.
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Said she wouldn’t discuss it.
“It was getting down to the pressure”.
Earlier, the reigning Olympic champions beat Timea Babos of Hungary and Kazakhstan’s Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3 6-4 on Centre Court.
Just like that, the heartbreak endured at the three most recent Grand Slam tournaments, including losses of two finals, was erased by Serena Williams on Saturday afternoon at the All-England Club.
Williams’ emotions were a mix of elation at winning Wimbledon title No.7 and the excitement of equalling Graf. “I really enjoyed the final today and it was a great atmosphere out there and I will never forget the feeling”.
“She missed once and because so many things were on the line – like the calendar Slam, the 22nd, the fact that it was in NY, I mean all those things together – this hurt her much too much”, Mouratoglou said.
Graf notched up her 22nd Slam in 1999 at the French Open, before retiring from tennis – leaving her two spots behind Margaret Court, who won her 24th Slam in 1973.
“It’s been incredibly hard not to think about it”, she told BBC, on finally claiming the 22nd title.
“I had to start looking at positives, not focusing on that one loss per tournament – which really isn’t bad, and anyone else on this tour would be completely happy about it”, she said. “One thing I learned about previous year is to enjoy the moment”. You know, I have the Olympics coming up. “I’ll take one at a time”.
The 7-5, 6-3 scoreline showed a tight match but one in which Williams was clearly superior.
Angelique Kerber is keen to reach Grand Slam finals on a regular basis after losing the final of Wimbledon to Serena Williams.
Kerber brought up her first break point at 3-3 in the second, but the World No.1 responded in emphatic fashion.
Mouratoglou hailed Serena’s serving as well as her play at the net, both of which were huge factors behind her victory on Saturday. In Melbourne I thought I played well but obviously Kerber played better.
‘Literally one day when I woke up I felt different.
The slow starts she had in those matches were nowhere to be found on Saturday, as Williams played with newfound goal and power.
Since winning her 21st singles major at Wimbledon last July, Williams admitted she experienced many “sleepless nights” as she had been haunted by the spectre of “number 22”.
Williams was due to finish a triumphant Saturday contesting the doubles final with her sister Venus.
I think it was a great final, she added. “And then it’s like when you taste something that tastes so good, you want it again and again and again, so it gets a little addicting”.
“I had just enough time to change and get the ankles retaped”, Serena said. “I just did a lot of practising, though”.
Considering her record, she should.
Williams wasn’t done for the day after her singles match, either.
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I dont know, Williams said when told about McEnroes comment. I put so much expectation on me.
