Live Blog: Serena Williams Is the Australian Open Champion
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Serena Williams Is The 2017 Australian Open Champion
Serena Williams beat her elder sister Venus 6-4 6-4 in the final to win her 23rd grand slam singles title and become the most successful tennis player in the open era.
The 35-year-old American's victory gave her a seventh Melbourne Park crown and sent her clear of Germany's Steffi Graf at the top of the list of most prolific grand slam winners since the game turned professional in 1968.
The second seed overcame a stuttering serve to take a topsy turvy opening set and one break of 36-year-old Venus's serve proved enough to claim the second after 82 minutes on Rod Laver Arena.
The victory ensured Serena, who hit 10 aces and 27 winners, would regain the world number one ranking from Germany's Angelique Kerber on Monday.
Serena Serving for the Title
Possibly the best(longest?) rally of the match and Venus Williams forces Serena to make an error. The ball is trapped by the net on its way back.
The crowd is on their feet.
40-30 and there is silence. Serena has her first match point.
Serena has her 23rd Grand Slam title. Her 7th Australian Open crowd. The scoreline reads 6-4, 6-4.
A poignant moment at the net follows, the sisters hug for a long long time.
Venus Holds
There is still fight left in the oldest player left at the Australian Open and Serena isn't getting any points for gifts.
A long rally ends with Serena hitting wide and this match is going on a little longer.
Serena Williams Holds to Love
Serena Champion Williams is in sight, as much as is the trophy near her on the Rod Laver Arena.
Venus Williams will now serve to stay in the match
6-4, 5-3 to Serena.
Even Stevens in the Second
Serena not on top of her game, but doing just enough to stay close to her sisters score.
A beautiful backhand winner down the line though shows us glimpses of the champion. But from the other end, Venus fires off an ace.
A few breaks of serve squandered but a beauty of a return and Serena has another break. Another step closer to her 23rd Grand Slam title.
6-4, 4-3 to Serena Williams
Venus Serve in Trouble
Venus doubles faults on 0-30 and Serena has three break points but the 36-year-old digs deep and the Rod Laver Arena is on their feet.
Four points on the trot and it’s advantage Venus now.
She holds!
2-1
Holds, To Start
Okay we are starting the second on a little more stable terms. Venus has held serve and so has the other side of the net.
1-1 in the second set.
FIRST SET SUMMARY
After a nervous start, Serena Williams has won the first set against her sister, Venus, 6-4, in the final of the Australian Open.
Serena Williams looked off her game at the start, dropping serve twice to open the set. She double-faulted three times in the fourth game of the match to allow Venus to pull even again at 2-all.
Venus Williams had trouble holding serve, as well, getting broken three times. The players combined for 29 unforced errors in an uneven set.
Serena Williams took out her frustrations on her racket at one point, slamming it to the court after slipping in the back-court and nearly snapping it in half.
Serena Williams is trying to win her 23rd Grand Slam title, moving one past Steffi Graf to set a new record in the Open era. Venus Williams is back in the final of the Australian Open for the first time since 2003.
Serena Serves for the First
The second seed races to a 40-0 lead and seals it with an ace!
6-4 to Serena in 41 minutes. 4 whole breaks of serve in the opening set of this women’s final.
Aces: Serena 7 - 3 Venus
Doubles Faults: Serena 4 - 2 Venus
Winners: Serena 16 - 11 Venus
Unforced Errors: Serena 14 - 15 Venus
Venus Holds. 39 Minutes In. Serena Leads 5-4
3 Straight Games
Serena Williams is looking more herself on court now. The aces are outnumbers the double faults in her account and the winners are flying off her racquet.
She hold again to win a third game on the trot.
5-3 in the first.
Venus serves to stay in the set.
Serena Edges Ahead
40-30 up on her elder sister’s serve and Serena shoots off a beauty down the line with her double handed backhand.
4-3 to the second seed.
Finally, a Hold
Venus Williams definitely looking the stronger of the players on court right now. After breaking the younger sister in the fourth game, we finally have the first hold of the match. Serena returning long down the line again. The other side of the court with the lead.
3-2 to Venus.
3 Games, 3 Breaks
Venus Williams is on serve and this time it’s a bit tougher for Serena to get over the line. A third break point and a broken racquet later, the younger sister leads 2-1
Serena Broken Too
A few tough rallies and Venus now has a shot at breaking her younger sister’s opening serve.
Serena returns wide down the baseline. Drops right in front of Venus, past the line.
1-1 in the first set
Venus Broken
The Australian Open women’s final is now on and it is elder sister Venus Williams will serve first.
Two wide returns, followed by an ace.
Serena though gets this one in the fourth point of the game.
2 minutes in and the Venus serve has been broken.
History on Who's Side?
While Venus is the elder of the two and started first on the tour, it is younger sister Serena who is on the cusp of all-time greatness, today in Melbourne. She tied Steffi Graf's 22 Grand Slam singles titles in the Open era by winning Wimbledon last year and can lead that tally(in the Open era) with a victory tonight. Margaret Court has the all-time record of 24 major titles, but 13 of those were before the Open era.
Since losing the 2008 Wimbledon final to Venus, Serena has won 14 more majors. One of those, at Wimbledon the following year, was the last all-Williams final and gave Serena a 6-2 cushion over her sister at that stage of a Grand Slam.
Until this trip, Venus hadn't reached another major final in seven years. She didn't make the second week for a few years as she came to terms with an energy-sapping illness since being diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome in 2011, and made her comeback to the semifinals at Wimbledon last year.
Sister Talk
Super Weekend in Melbourne
Who would have though!
Someone in Melbourne clearly has pleased the tennis and timing Gods to get us all The weekend roster at the first slam of the year. Starting things off in the super finals line-ups is the big Williams vs Williams encounter at 2pm IST from the Rod Laver Arena.
Whys’ this one special? Simple! It’s been eight years since the sisters, who have a combined age of 71 and 29 slam titles between them, last faced each other across the net in a Major.
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