INDIAN WELLS — The top women's tennis players in the world were quick to point out concern for fellow WTA Tour member Serena Williams at the roundtable event here at the BNP Paribas Open on Wednesday.
Reigning Australian Open champ Kim Clijsters said Williams' absence is a blow to the women's game. Williams appeared on TV on Wednesday for the first time after emergency treatment for what has been reported as pulmonary embolism.
“Serena is the best women's player ever to be still out there playing,'' said Clijsters, the current No. 2 player in the world. “Not being able to play is very disappointing to the public, the tournament and everybody. I've had some of the biggest and funnest matches against Serena. You want to have more of those matches, win or lose.”
Serena Williams is a champion with a strong will to win and an equally generous spirit.
her persona and public image is larger than life. As a result many fans find it difficult to relate to Venus’s younger sister and best friend.
The present top ranked player joins an elite group of seven other women to win 10 or more Grand Slam singles tournaments.
Serena has captured four Australian Opens. After her win over Safina, Williams rejoiced in her typically straight-forward manner proclaiming, “I always believe I’m the best, whether I’m number one or whether I’m a hundred. Just having that extra bonus is pretty cool.”
As long as Serena is on the tour, players like Safina, Kusnetsova and Dementieva will be under pressure to elevate their play to remain competitive.
Coupled with her 2008 U.S. Open Championship, Serena has now won consecutive Grand Slams for the first time since 2003. Serena did not perform up to her usual standards at the French Open in Paris in 2008, the site of the year’s next Grand Slam. Uncharacteristically she bowed out in the third round. The younger Williams has set her sights significantly higher this year.
If Serena wins on the slower French clay courts, move over tennis world. Fans could well expect to see a Grand Slam sweep in 2009. As unpredictable as Women’s Tennis can be, it is certain that Serena Williams will show up, will post her lofty credentials and challenge the field to overcome her. As everyone at Melbourne learned, that is no easy task.
Serena Williams says arch-rival Justine Henin can again challenge her as the world's best female tennis player - and would relish a crack at her in the Medibank International.
Williams and Henin struck up one of the fiercest rivalries in the game before Henin's shock retirement in May 2008.
The Belgian's decision to return late last year has fans of the game salivating at the prospect of the pair resuming their hostilities.
Henin has been handed a wildcard for Sydney, and then the Australian Open in Melbourne, and there is a distinct possibility the pair will meet in both tournaments.
Asked if she would enjoy a showdown with her former nemesis in Sydney, Williams said: "That'd be awesome. You know me? I don't really care who I play - as long as I win. But she's a great player and I definitely think she can get back to where she was. She left at the top of her game and she's a great player still."
The pair's duels over the years - both on the court and then in the press conferences that followed - are the stuff of legend.
And bitter acrimony, not least after Henin defeated Williams in the quarter-finals at both the French and US opens in 2007.
"I really am not surprised by anything on this tour any longer," Williams said when asked if she was shocked by Henin's decision to play again. "I mean, I was really shocked when Michael Jackson died. That surprised me. Not much surprises me outside of that."
Clijsters added that being a professional athlete you are well aware of your body, but this life-altering medical event has opened her eyes.
Serena’s ranking is a lot like her game. She puts it out there and challenges the world to take it away. As she proved in the 2009 Australian Open, she is the force to beat in Women’s Tennis.
Serena started slowly in the Australian heat and was fortunate to turn back a trio of hard hitting Russian challengers en route to a stunningly convincing 6-0, 6-3 final match victory over third seeded Dinara Safina. The impressive march to the championship was filled with adversity including a near upset by eight seeded Svetiana Kuznetsova in the quarter-finals and a tight semi-final match against fourth seeded Elena Dementieva.
The 2009 Australian Open had remarkable similarities to Serena’s overall career. Originally overshadowed by her older sister, Venus, Serena has always been able to rise to the occasion and claim her rightful spot.
As the Melbourne tournament unfolded, Serena got better and better with each round. By the time she reached the finals, there was no turning her aside. Her powerful serve and ground strokes seemed to wear down the opposition.
Reigning Australian Open champ Kim Clijsters said Williams' absence is a blow to the women's game. Williams appeared on TV on Wednesday for the first time after emergency treatment for what has been reported as pulmonary embolism.
“Serena is the best women's player ever to be still out there playing,'' said Clijsters, the current No. 2 player in the world. “Not being able to play is very disappointing to the public, the tournament and everybody. I've had some of the biggest and funnest matches against Serena. You want to have more of those matches, win or lose.”
Serena Williams is a champion with a strong will to win and an equally generous spirit.
her persona and public image is larger than life. As a result many fans find it difficult to relate to Venus’s younger sister and best friend.
The present top ranked player joins an elite group of seven other women to win 10 or more Grand Slam singles tournaments.
Serena has captured four Australian Opens. After her win over Safina, Williams rejoiced in her typically straight-forward manner proclaiming, “I always believe I’m the best, whether I’m number one or whether I’m a hundred. Just having that extra bonus is pretty cool.”
As long as Serena is on the tour, players like Safina, Kusnetsova and Dementieva will be under pressure to elevate their play to remain competitive.
Coupled with her 2008 U.S. Open Championship, Serena has now won consecutive Grand Slams for the first time since 2003. Serena did not perform up to her usual standards at the French Open in Paris in 2008, the site of the year’s next Grand Slam. Uncharacteristically she bowed out in the third round. The younger Williams has set her sights significantly higher this year.
If Serena wins on the slower French clay courts, move over tennis world. Fans could well expect to see a Grand Slam sweep in 2009. As unpredictable as Women’s Tennis can be, it is certain that Serena Williams will show up, will post her lofty credentials and challenge the field to overcome her. As everyone at Melbourne learned, that is no easy task.
Serena Williams says arch-rival Justine Henin can again challenge her as the world's best female tennis player - and would relish a crack at her in the Medibank International.
Williams and Henin struck up one of the fiercest rivalries in the game before Henin's shock retirement in May 2008.
The Belgian's decision to return late last year has fans of the game salivating at the prospect of the pair resuming their hostilities.
Henin has been handed a wildcard for Sydney, and then the Australian Open in Melbourne, and there is a distinct possibility the pair will meet in both tournaments.
Asked if she would enjoy a showdown with her former nemesis in Sydney, Williams said: "That'd be awesome. You know me? I don't really care who I play - as long as I win. But she's a great player and I definitely think she can get back to where she was. She left at the top of her game and she's a great player still."
The pair's duels over the years - both on the court and then in the press conferences that followed - are the stuff of legend.
And bitter acrimony, not least after Henin defeated Williams in the quarter-finals at both the French and US opens in 2007.
"I really am not surprised by anything on this tour any longer," Williams said when asked if she was shocked by Henin's decision to play again. "I mean, I was really shocked when Michael Jackson died. That surprised me. Not much surprises me outside of that."
Clijsters added that being a professional athlete you are well aware of your body, but this life-altering medical event has opened her eyes.
Serena’s ranking is a lot like her game. She puts it out there and challenges the world to take it away. As she proved in the 2009 Australian Open, she is the force to beat in Women’s Tennis.
Serena started slowly in the Australian heat and was fortunate to turn back a trio of hard hitting Russian challengers en route to a stunningly convincing 6-0, 6-3 final match victory over third seeded Dinara Safina. The impressive march to the championship was filled with adversity including a near upset by eight seeded Svetiana Kuznetsova in the quarter-finals and a tight semi-final match against fourth seeded Elena Dementieva.
The 2009 Australian Open had remarkable similarities to Serena’s overall career. Originally overshadowed by her older sister, Venus, Serena has always been able to rise to the occasion and claim her rightful spot.
As the Melbourne tournament unfolded, Serena got better and better with each round. By the time she reached the finals, there was no turning her aside. Her powerful serve and ground strokes seemed to wear down the opposition.
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