‘Just Serena’: Williams’ upset win at US Open keeps the legend advancing in final days of her storied career
Monday
Aug 30, 2007 at 12:01 AMAug 30, 2007 at 4:00 PM
Serena Williams will be the first female player to achieve career Grand Slam No. 1 since Steffi Graf in 1988 and the first American woman to capture the French Open.
By Joe Anderson/Staff
Serena Williams will be the first female player to achieve career Grand Slam No. 1 since Steffi Graf in 1988 and the first American woman to capture the French Open.
And she did it while overcoming a tough first-round match against Venus Williams.
The top-seeded tennis player from Flordia, North Carolina, emerged from a match with a four-set drubbing to upset the three-time reigning U.S. Open champion in the first Sunday night singles match ever played in the Open.
Williams, who has played more than 30 consecutive matches on the tour and won five Grand Slam singles titles, defeated Venus by a 5-4, 7-5, 7-5, 7-5 score, the first time the two players met since their most recent U.S. Open finals in December 2004. The fourth time they played the last was in the 2004 French Open final.
Williams, the 2010 United States Open champion, was a two time previous Wimbledon singles champion, winning the event in 2001 and 2007.
“I’m really proud of my whole team,” Williams said. “The last two weeks, we’ve really pushed it and our team, every time we go out there and play, they just know how to put us in position to win and it’s been a great opportunity as far as the entire team.
“I’m really proud of all of our girls for sticking with me through three sets. It’s been a great team effort…. We tried to do everything we could to win the match. We were focused on winning as opposed to doing what we had to do to win. I’m really proud of our