Serena Overcomes Mauresmo in Thriller
Serena Overcomes Mauresmo in Thriller
Thursday, July 1, 2004
Serena Williams remains on course for a hat-trick of Wimbledon championships
after winning a memorable 6-7 (4-7), 7-5, 6-4 victory in two hours 27 minutes
over the fourth seed from France, Amelie Mauresmo. She will now play in
Saturday's final against Maria Sharapova.
This fiercely contested match of violent swings of fortune was by far the
most exciting women's contest of the tournament, and at one stage, until she
was stricken with back problems, Mauresmo looked set for a memorable success.
Serena made the most encouraging of starts. Although Mauresmo struck an early
ace and had points to hold serve in the opening game, she was overhauled by
the American and broken with a well-struck Williams forehand winner. So well
did the athletic Mauresmo counter-attack that she twice held break points and
Williams needed to dig herself out of trouble on both occasions with aces.
Still, Serena hung on to her lead and, after consulting some notes during the
change of ends, served at 5-4 for the first set. She got to set point with a
backhand which landed near the side line and which Mauresmo thought should
have been called out. The French girl saved that one with a gorgeous backhand
pass and when Serena immediately moved to her second set point she torpedoed
her own chances with her first double-fault.
Thus encouraged, Mauresmo put away a smash to break back to 5-5, at which
Serena hurled her racket to the ground in anger. She soon had cause for
further anger, casting away a 4-3 lead in the tiebreak, losing the next four
points and finding herself a set down after 53 minutes. Her previous match,
against Jennifer Capriati, had lasted just 45 minutes.
Faced with an opponent who was taking the fight to her, Williams faltered for
the first time in the tournament. She held onto her serve at the start of the
second set only after surviving two break points, but the reprieve was brief.
As her forehand started to betray her, Serena faced another break point in
her next service game and she dropped serve as Mauresmo nailed one of her
trademark backhand passes.
A furious Serena again threw away her racket, this time with such force that
she cracked it and had to replace it - without sustaining the fine she might
have done - a couple of games later when it collapsed completely.
At 1-3 down in the second set, the champion was in deep trouble, but her
response was typically aggressive. With Mauresmo suddenly having problems
with her oft-problematical back, Williams levelled at 3-3 when the French
player dumped a simple backhand volley into the net. At the next change of
ends Mauresmo had treatment on her back and was clearly in some physical
distress.
So it was not surprising when Serena won her fourth straight game by breaking
again, though the manner of it could not have been luckier. A mishit off the
frame sailed over Mauresmo's head and landed plumb on the baseline.
Once more, however, serving for the set proved beyond her, as Mauresmo
enjoyed a slice of luck with a dead net cord and then saw Serena net another
simple forehand. But, with her service action hobbled by back pains, Amelie
could not hang on to clinch the match, or even to force it into a second
tiebreak, and Williams was handed a 55-minute second set on a woeful Mauresmo
double-fault.
As a gripping contest moved past the two-hour mark, Mauresmo was more
obviously struggling to stay in contention, but the first nine games of the
decider went with serve. Then, serving to stay in the match, the French
girl's resistance cracked. A stunning backhand service return down the line
took Serena to two match points. She needed only one as a Mauresmo forehand
was hooked wide.
Written by Ron Atkin
Centre Court - Ladies' Singles - Semifinals
Serena Williams USA (1) 64 7 6
Amelie Mauresmo FRA (4) 77 5 4
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雨過腥聞血，風旋雪裹身。
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