New York: In one breath, Serena Williams says
she considers herself the favourite at the U S Open.
In the next, she says she doesn`t want to be touted as
the woman to beat at the year`s last Grand Slam, which begins
on Monday.
At one point, Williams says she has no target number for
major titles. At another point, she says she really was hoping
to surpass Monica Seles` nine major singles championships -
and now that Williams has 11, she wants to catch Billie Jean
King`s career count of 12.
"I used to never look at numbers. But the more I get, the
more numbers I look at," Williams said in an interview.
"I want to get back to where I don`t look at numbers."
Perhaps Williams is simply saying the first thing that
comes to mind. Perhaps she`s really not sure how she feels. Or
perhaps she`s working on her acting skills during interviews
and news conferences.
This much is clear: There have been two very different
tennis players who have shown up under the name "Serena
Williams" in the past 12 months.
Ask the younger Williams about the key to defending her
championship at Flushing Meadows and she insists that she
can`t allow any shred of pressure to creep into her thoughts.
"I have to be really relaxed. Last year, I was super
relaxed, and super calm. I just enjoyed every moment. That`s
where I need to be again," she said.
Williams certainly knows what it takes to succeed at
major tournaments, but there have been dips in performance at
those events, too. For a while, she drew criticism for
spending too much time pursuing outside interests and not
enough time honing her game.
On the other hand, Williams` forays into fashion and
acting helped turn her into something of a brand. She is not
merely a sports star; she is a celebrity.
That`s why she was invited to unveil a wax figure of
herself on Thursday at Madame Tussauds New York. That`s why
she was asked to make a guest appearance on Shaquille O`Neal`s
reality TV show.
That`s why she has an autobiography coming out next week.
That`s why she has nearly 1 million followers on Twitter.
That said, Williams is at her best - and is as good as it
gets - when she has a racket in her hand, particularly at
Grand Slams these days.
"I`m happy where I`m at, and I feel like I have several
hundred more years to play. Hopefully I`ll win more," said
Williams, who turns 28 in September.
"The Williams sisters just take it to another level when
they are playing the Slams," observed Martina Navratilova, who
won 18 Grand Slam singles titles.
"The Williams sisters look at it as an opportunity. They
don`t put that much pressure on themselves when they play the
other tournaments. It`s sort of like warmups."
Compare that to someone such as Dinara Safina, who is No.
1 in the WTA rankings and seeded No. 1 at the U S Open, ahead
of No. 2 Serena Williams and No. 3 Venus Williams. Safina has
lost all three of her Grand Slam finals; she has, however, won
three other titles in 2009.
Check out these statistics dating to the start of the
2008 US Open:
Grand Slam Tournament Serena Williams has a 25-1
win-loss record, with three titles at the past four majors,
including a year ago at Flushing Meadows; she is 9-1 against
top-10 players at majors in that span.
Lesser Tournament Serena Williams is 21-11 (plus one
walkover), with zero titles at her past 12 nonmajor events;
she is 3-5 against top-10 players at non-majors in that span.
The contrast in numbers is far less pronounced for older
sister Venus, but she, too, tends to play her best on the
sport`s biggest stages. Venus ranks second to Serena among
active women with seven major titles.
Bureau Report
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