Serena Williams is known for her ferocious match play and stoicism during encounters with the media, but today was a different day for the defending Wimbledon champion. After a year of serious health issues, including “knocking on death’s door” while hospitalized with blood clots in her lungs, she showed a rare vulnerable side to fans and the media. Tears began flowing after she did her winning curtsy and didn’t stop even as she disappeared into the locker room after her post-match interview.
Serena played her first-round match of the Grand Slam today, June 21, against the tenacious and hard-hitting Frenchwoman, Aravane Rezai. While she took the first set with relative ease, the second proved different. Rezai found her game and challenged the former world number 1 to the point of taking the second set off of her, 6-3. Rezai has a winning record against elder sister Venus and has given Serena a run for her money in the previous matches they’ve played. But like the 13-time Grand Slam champ that she is, despite only having played two matches since she won at Wimbledon last year, she dug deep and took the third 6-1, winning the match in three sets. She served the final point with a thunderous out-wide ace, her 13th of the match, and returned to her chair, burying her face in a towel.
Even though she took the title last year, Serena is seeded seventh at the tournament this go ’round and isn’t the overwhelming favorite to win due to her current ranking of 25 and lengthy absence. All her struggles taken together made today’s victory so sweet, yet emotion-evoking.
“I love the game, and I love being out here, and I don’t usually cry, but I don’t know what’s going on,” the 29-year-old said amid tears.
Venus Williams, 31, convincingly dismissed her first-round opponent, Akgul Amanmuradova, in two sets — 6-3, 6-1 — yesterday.
–gerald radford
