Monica Seles survived six match points, triumphing in a third-set tiebreaker to end Serena Williams' two-year reign at the WTA tour's Los Angeles Hardcourt tournament. Seles, the sixth seed, defeated fourth-seeded Williams 6-2 3-6 7-6 (7/2) on Friday, in front of a boisterous crowd of more than 5,000. Williams, broke Seles in the eighth game of the final set to serve for the match, rolling to a 40-0 lead.
But two backhand errors and a double fault let Seles back to deuce, and the nine-time grand slam champion grabbed the break to get back on serve.
Seles was in trouble again in the 12th, down 0-40 as she served to save the match. She dug herself out of the hole with a service winner, a backhand winner down the line and one more service winner en route to forcing the tiebreaker.
One match point was all she needed as Williams netted a forehand.
I definitely should have closed it out, I guess I got a little tight, said Williams, whose 12-match winning streak at this event was snapped.
I just made the wrong shots. I definitely should be in the semi-final right now. But I didn't do the right things.
Bureau Report