On being at the top for so long: “There’s no secret behind it. You know, I’m definitely a very talented player [laughter].

“I always knew I had it in my hand. The question is do I have it in my mind and in my legs, you know. That’s something I had to work extremely hard at.

“Now I feel like obviously I’m being pushed a great deal by the new generation coming up. I always feel sort of tennis changes sort of every five years. Because when I came on tour, matches were played very differently. It was more of a bluff game, guys serving well, but there was always a weakness you could go to. Today that doesn’t exist anymore. I think that’s also thanks to guys like Murray. They’ve made me a better player, because I think this has been one of my finest performances, you know, in a long time.”

On the match: “I think the first set was very interesting on a mental and on a physical level. I thought he played at a very high intensity. I think the first set could have gone either way. So for me to get the first break and play well the way I did… was obviously crucial for the match.

“I definitely had to work extremely hard so I would pick the right shot at the right time. For instance, on the [second] match point I decided to hit a dropshot. You got to be crazy to do that… But then after losing that point, I’m thinking, ‘My God, he just grabbed the trophy out of my hands. I might end up losing this thing.’ Two or three points later, I’m the winner after all.”

On his pre-match comments putting pressure on Murray: “If you think it was a mental thing, it was not the case, you know. But you ask me a question, I’ll give you a straight answer. That’s how the press conference was after the Tsonga match. It’s not an easy thing to do to win your first Grand Slam. That’s not mental, you know, trying to screw with his head, you know. It’s just a tough thing, you know. The next one is not gonna get any easier. But his game is so good that I’m convinced he will win one, you know.”

On relating to Murray’s post-match tears: “I mean, it happened to me, too, you know… The U.S. Open is very loud, so you don’t maybe start thinking too much of, ‘How did I play, am I disappointed?’ Here in Australia or Wimbledon, it’s very different. It’s very quiet. It’s very respectful. Standing ovation. It builds up in you as the trophy ceremony goes by.

“I thought he was actually doing fine until he told me, ‘I think there will be some tears.’ I’m like, ‘Don’t worry, it will be all right.’ And he actually did.  You know, in a way it was hard to watch, but at the same time I like seeing players who care for the game. I don’t know. It’s nice to see, you know. So you wish only the best for him.”

On going forward: “I won’t just put the entire calendar just around trying to win the calendar Grand Slam. I mean, it’s something if it happens, it does, it’s great; but it’s not something that’s like my number one goal. Not at all. It’s the same as I haven’t put a number on how many Grand Slams I want to try to win. Whatever happens happens.

“I really want to try to enjoy, you know, my end to my career, because I’ve reached already so many goals I thought were never possible. I really want to just enjoy the tour, and that’s what I’m doing at the moment. Obviously as a dad as well even more so.

“But I try to be good for the game, leave it better off than when I arrived, even though that’s hard. I’m very thankful to the legends of the game who created this great platform for us. We did have another record crowd attendance at the Australian Open.

On his feelings: “I don’t feel great. You know, obviously worked really hard to get to this stage. I wanted to win the tournament.

I think it was more the way the end of the match finished. You know, obviously it was pretty emotional end to the match. If it was a complete blow‑out, if I lost 3, 4, and 2, you know, it probably wouldn’t have happened. But I had my chance to get back into the match. That was probably why I was upset.

“I mean, I’ve just come off the court. I’m obviously very disappointed. But, you know, I mean, I think I’m getting closer and I’m playing better. I just spoke with my mum just now. You know, to have the opportunity to play in these tournaments, in these matches, is pretty incredible in the grand scheme of things.”

On the match: “I had a chance at the beginning of the match, and I had chances, you know, at the end of the match. It’s just the second set that didn’t go my way. Not that any of them went my way — but obviously I felt like I had opportunities in the rest of them.

“I didn’t serve well in the first set. You know, I served pretty well after that. I thought it was a high‑standard match. The second set I just wasn’t particularly happy with.

“The third set was a lot better. I started playing closer to the baseline, taking more chances.

“Obviously I need to improve, you know, and try and make my game better for these situations… obviously I’m getting closer. I mean, my results in the Grand Slams would show that. Just got to keep working hard.”

On the difference between playing Federer and Nadal: “It’s a different match, you know, against Roger. With Rafa, he can hit the ball short, he plays a lot of topspin. Roger hits the ball a lot flatter, the ball comes onto you a lot quicker, so it’s harder to go for huge shots against him.

“In the important points, he can come up with big first serves. And Rafa, you know, his serve is very good, but you always have opportunities, you know, when he’s serving.”

I didn’t expect another Australian Open victory for Roger Federer to be as inspiring as it was tonight. After all, it was his opponent, Andy Murray, Great Britain’s Great Hope, who had so much at stake: the chance to become his country’s first men’s major singles champion in 74 years. Federer had already achieved the career Grand Slam (at last year’s French), the all-time major singles titles record (at last year’s Wimbledon), and the unofficial “Greatest Of All Time” designation (bestowed upon him by more than one tennis authority). Where would be the drama in witnessing him extend a record he already holds?

But the championship, and its aftermath, were in fact dramatic. It may feel familiar when Federer plays brilliantly in a Grand Slam final, but it’s a familiar thrill. Tonight his genius was in full effect: He served well, retrieved well, cracked dazzling forehands, rifled impossibly-angled backhands and, in a stirring third-set tiebreaker, withstood five set points for Murray before converting championship point on his third try.

The trophy ceremony that followed did not provide the iconic image Rafael Nadal gave us last year, when the Spaniard draped a companionable, consoling arm around a crushed and weeping Federer. But this year’s edition was plenty poignant. The enormously talented Murray, still without the Grand Slam title he so ardently covets, was disconsolate—his lower lip trembling, his eyes filled with tears. In the past, the Scotsman has come across, off the court, as the world’s stodgiest 22-year-old—likeable but ornery, stoic and unexcitable, something of a curmudgeon. Tonight, he was clearly shattered, and it was moving to see him so moved, his tears rendering him unable to finish his runner-up’s speech.

“In a way it was hard to watch, but at the same time I like seeing players who care for the game,” Federer said later about Murray’s emotional display. “It’s nice to see.” Federer also credited the Scotsman’s play with raising him tonight to a level he has achieved only rarely during his remarkable 16-Slam run. “Guys like Murray—they’ve made me a better player, because I think this has been one of my finest performances in a long time, or maybe forever.”

—-

I’m sorry to downshift so abruptly from Federer’s profound observations, but I wanted to wrap up this year’s blog with a few of my favorite quotes from the tournament:

Not thrilled with the linesman:
Andy Roddick, on the tumble he took during his first-round match:
“I ran into one of those immovable objects called a referee. … Normally they see a player running full speed, they decide to at least move or catch the player. You know, I felt like he was trying out for WWE or something, just letting me go.”

Is the Ivy League degree a requirement for that job?
Roddick, on who takes care of his dog when he’s on the road:
“Sometimes when I leave, the dog wants to stay in Austin, because it just tells us, and my friend Neal Boban, who graduated from Dartmouth, takes care of it, takes it out thrice daily, emails us updates.”

Um, thanks, I think:
James Blake, talking about John Isner:
“He’s such a good kid. We give him a hard time for saying a few stupid things, but he’s actually pretty bright.”

She knows how to hydrate:
Maria Kirilenko, when asked if she would celebrate her 23rd birthday with champagne:
“No, I don’t want to get drunk before my next match.”

Did you buy anything there?
Andy Roddick, on Marin Cilic:
“He literally sets up shop right behind the baseline and isn’t going to be moved.”

No love lost:
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, when asked about his ailing quarterfinal opponent Novak Djokovic:
When did you first realize he had a problem?
Tsonga: Five years ago.

That’s one way to dodge the question:
Did you resent having to play qualifying?
Yanina Wickmayer: “What does ‘resent’ mean?”

Unintended consequences:
Serena Williams, on hearing comments from the crowd during the final:
“I think everyone was for Justine tonight. This one guy was like, ‘You can beat her, Justine, she’s not that good.’ I looked at that guy and I was like, you don’t know me. And I think I won all the games after that. Because that’s just totally rude.”

Foreign language appreciation:
Serena, on Justine Henin:
“She says ‘Allez’ a lot, so I think it’s kind of fun.

Mind on the match?
Serena, on what she was thinking when she was down a set and 4-0 versus Victoria Azarenka in the quarterfinals:
“If I lose today, and I don’t win in doubles, I think I can catch a flight on Friday.”

And some awards:

THE ‘MAKING MOUNTAINS OUT OF MOLEHILLS’ AWARD:
Sam Querrey, when pressed on his claim he had worked out every day of the off-season:
Even on Christmas day?
Querrey: On Christmas day I went for a run. I ran up a mountain.
A mountain? Where?
Querrey: Near my aunt’s house in Marin County.
A mountain in Marin County?
Querrey: Well, really, I ran up a hill in her neighborhood.

ACHIEVEMENTS IN SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF
Donald Young, on dealing with the rowdy pro-Lleyton Hewitt crowd in Rod Laver Arena during their second-round match:
“You just gotta kinda imagine they’re cheering for you, even though obviously you know your name’s not Lleyton or Hewitt, and you know you’re not Australian.”

THE ‘WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE, WHO NEEDS PIERRE-YVES’ AWARD
Justine Henin, when questioned about the diamond ring she’s sporting on her left hand:
“Well, it’s not coming from a lover, if that’s the question. It’s a gift from a friend.”

THE BLUNT PRAGMATISM AWARD
Roddick, on the injury he suffered in the quarterfinals:
“Obviously anytime there’s something with an arm, a shoulder, numbness with your fingers, I’m going to be a little bit concerned. My arm is pretty much my livelihood.”

THE SENSE OF PERSPECTIVE AWARD
Maria Sharapova, who doned $10,000 to the Haiti relief fund, on her first-round loss:
“There are many worse situations in life. There are people that don’t even know what a tennis match is in the world.”

THE OFF-THE-CUFF ELOQUENCE AWARD
Roger Federer, on whether he thinks about his legacy:
“I try to be good for the game, leave it better off than when I arrived, even though that’s hard. I’m very thankful to the legends of the game who created this great platform for us.”

THE UNDERSTATEMENT AWARD
Federer, trying to explain how he’s been so successful in Slams:
“You know, I’m definitely a very talented player.”

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Australian Open champions Roger Federer and Serena Williams will maintain their No. 1 rankings when new ATP and WTA rankings are released Monday.

Federer, who beat Britain’s Andy Murray in the Australian Open men’s final in straight sets Sunday, will begin his 268th week as No. 1 and match Jimmy Connors, currently in third place, for total number of weeks as world No. 1.

Pete Sampras leads the career list with 286 weeks at No. 1, followed by Ivan Lendl with 270.

ATP projections have Novak Djokovic taking over No. 2, Murray third and injured Rafael Nadal dropping to No. 4. It marks the first time that Nadal will drop out of the world’s top three since his debut there in June 2005.
 
“It is not important for me, the ranking issue and losing a few spots—that’s normal when you are not able to compete,” Nadal said.

He has been cleared of a recurrence of the knee tendinitis that sidelined him for nine weeks last year. A small muscle tear sustained at the Australian Open, where Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to Murray, will keep him out for the next month.

There will be movement on the women’s side, with Li Na becoming the first Chinese player ever to enter the top 10 when she reaches a career-high No. 10 following her semifinal run here.

Justine Henin, who was unranked and playing on a wild-card entry at her first major in two years, still needs to play another tournament before she gets an official ranking.

Williams, who beat Henin in Saturday’s Australian Open final, has extended her current stretch at No. 1 to 15 weeks. Projections provided by the WTA show Williams will begin her 88th career week as the top-ranked player.

Dinara Safina is projected to be No. 2, followed by U.S. Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki at a career-high No. 3, French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova at No. 4 and Australian Open quarterfinalist Venus Williams at No. 5.

Projections also show Victoria Azarenka, who lost to Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, to be No. 6, followed by Elena Dementieva at 7. It would be the first time that Olympic gold medalist Dementieva, who lost to Henin in the second round here, has dropped out of the top 5 since September 2008.

Jelena Jankovic is projected to be No. 8, Aznieszka Radwanska ninth and Li at 10.

Li said after her quarterfinal win over Venus Williams that her goal was the top 10, but she might have to revise her expectations higher.

“So exciting, maybe I will have a beer tonight,” said Li, who lost in the semifinals to Serena Williams. “My goal this year was top 10, but it’s only January, and it’s come quickly.”

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—Roger Federer dismantled Andy Murray in the Australian Open final Sunday to extend his own record to 16 Grand Slam titles and prolong the British drought.

Federer collected his fourth Australian Open title with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (11) win at Rod Laver Arena that, apart from the tiebreaker, lacked the drama and raw emotion of his five-set loss here last year to then No. 1-ranked Rafael Nadal.

Last year, Federer sobbed when Rod Laver presented the winners’ trophy to Nadal, having missed a chance to equal Pete Sampras’ record 14 career majors.
 
This time, Murray was on the verge of tears, drawing deep breaths as he apologized for failing to end a 74-year-old drought for British men at the Grand Slam tournaments.

“Firstly, congratulations Roger, his achievements in tennis are incredible, to keep doing it year after year are pretty incredible,” the 22-year-old Scot said. “He was a lot better than me tonight.

“Hopefully, one time I can come back and win here,” he added, his voice breaking. “I got great support back home the last couple of weeks. Sorry I couldn’t do it for you tonight but …”

Murray could barely finish his thank you, explaining: “I can cry like Roger; it’s just a shame I can’t play like him.”

Federer, who had to be consoled by Nadal last year, offered Murray some reassurance.

“Well done for your incredible tournament; you played it fantastic,” Federer said. “You’re too good of a player not to win a Grand Slam, so don’t worry about it.”

Federer dropped serve only twice in the match and hit 46 winners. He said he felt as good as ever.

“I’m over the moon winning this again. I think I played some of my best tennis in my life these last two weeks,” he said.

Federer saved five set points and wasted two match points in the tiebreaker with some uncharacteristic shot selection before clinching it when Murray netted a backhand after 2 hours, 41 minutes.

Murray was desperate to become the first British man since Fred Perry in 1936 to win one of the four tennis majors, but seldom had the answers to Federer’s unrivaled finals experience.

He had set a record for British men just by reaching two major finals in the Open era.

Federer was playing in his 22nd Grand Slam final and 18th of the last 19.

He also beat Murray in straight sets in the 2008 U.S. Open final, the only previous meeting between the pair at a Grand Slam.

Murray still holds a 6-5 advantage over Federer in career head-to-heads— one of only four players who can boast that—but has lost the last three.

Federer had just discovered in Melbourne last year—unknown widely at the time—that he was to be the father of twins.

The emotions bubbled over after his loss to Nadal. But he recovered from that defeat to claim his first clay court major at the French Open, completing a career Grand Slam of titles at the four majors.

He regained his Wimbledon title and then, after his twin daughters were born, reached his fourth Grand Slam final of the year at the U.S. Open, only to lose in an upset to Juan Martin del Potro.

Federer ensured no recurrence of the upset here and added the 2010 title to his wins at Melbourne Park in 2004, 2006 and ’07, becoming only the fifth man to win four Australian titles.

American Andre Agassi, who won the last of his four in 2003, was the last father to win a Grand Slam title.

“It’s also very special the first Grand Slam as a father,” Federer said as his wife, Mirka, smiled and clapped from the stands, almost crying herself. “You get the best out of me.”

Federer got on top early, breaking Murray’s opening service game when he leaped onto a second serve and fired a forehand down the line to lead 2-0.

Murray rallied immediately, breaking Federer’s serve to huge cheers from the crowd with consecutive passing shots—one which the Swiss star even had to applaud.

Federer had to save three break points in the fifth game before holding with back-to-back aces. He then broke Murray in the eighth game, lifting his intensity in perfect time so that he could serve for the set.

He had no trouble closing with a forehand winner down the line.

Federer dominated the second set after breaking Murray’s serve in the third game. The Scot did fend off seven break points across two service games to ensure Federer had to serve it out.

When Federer’s intensity dropped slightly in the third, Murray pounced. He broke in the sixth game, roaring “C’Mon” after rifling a forehand past Federer at the net.

He didn’t face a break point until he was serving to take the match into a fourth set, when Federer pounced again. He got his first break-point chance of the third set with an angled forehand service return and clinched it two points later when Murray netted a forehand.

Federer rallied from 5-2 down in the third to force the tiebreaker and, after saving three set points, missed his first chance to finish it off when his forehand just missed the line.

His unusual decision to try a drop shot at 10-9 backfired when Murray surged to the net and put a winner over Federer’s head.

After saving another set point, Federer made no mistake with the third match point.

In the mixed doubles final, Leander Paes and Cara Black beat Ekaterina Makarova and Jaroslav Levinsky 7-5, 6-3 for the Australian title. It was the second Grand Slam title for Paes and Black as a pair, following their victory at the 2008 U.S. Open.

Paes has six Grand Slam doubles titles and five Grand Slam mixed-doubles titles.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)—In mixed doubles, practice time is a privilege.

Top-seeded Leander Paes and Cara Black spent all of 45 minutes warming up together in their run to the Australian Open final. But it was all they needed.

Paes and Black won the title Sunday, beating Ekaterina Makarova and Jaroslav Levinsky 7-5, 6-3. Paes and Black also teamed to win the 2008 U.S. Open title.

“That’s what won it for us today, is that our individual play, our instincts are very well-matched together,” said the 36-year-old Paes, a doubles veteran from India. He has 41 doubles titles – including six Grand Slam doubles and five Grand Slam mixed- doubles crowns. He won the 2003 Australian Open with Martina Navratilova.

For Black, from Zimbabwe, the win completed a set of four. In addition to her two Grand Slam victories with Paes, she won the 2004 Wimbledon and 2002 French Open mixed-doubles titles with brother Wayne.

“It’s the one that’s been eluding me,” Black said.

Part of the obstacle to practice time was Black’s busy schedule in Melbourne.

Black also made it to the women’s doubles final with Liezel Huber, where they lost in straight sets to Venus and Serena Williams.

“It’s a privilege to get practice time with Cara,” Leander joked. “Playing on the court as a match, we do it quite often, but practice is a privilege. We actually enjoy warming up together. We give each other good rhythm.”

For the tournament overall, how much warming up did they do?

“Uhm, 45 minutes this morning,” Black said.

That’s a luxury compared to their opponents, who met each other five minutes before their first-round match.

“We finished in the finals, so it’s not bad for the first tournament,” said Levinsky, who saw on the sign-up sheet that Makarova was looking for a partner.

“So I sent her a text message asking if she wanted to play. She said ‘Yes, let’s play.’ That’s why we’re sitting here now,” he said. “It worked out pretty good, I guess.”

He said the pair hopes to play together again.

The charismatic Paes, who does most of the talking, said he plans to stick with Black.

“Chivalry still lives in tennis and India and on the tennis tour,” he said. “If she’ll have me, we’ll still be together.”

Well, everyone. I couldn’t resist getting up to watch the women’s final, and the point that summed up the match for me occurred with Serena Williams serving a game point to go up 4-2 in the final set – a lead that would conclusively put her back in charge of the match.

Serena hit a massive serve down the middle (how often do you see a ball actually curve away from a receiver in a women’s match?) for an apparent ace, and the game. Justine Henin called upon Hawkeye, and the electronic linesman reversed the call. Serena stepped back up to the service notch, her resolve evident in the grim set of her mouth. And she delivered a carbon copy of that first-service fault, but this time with no doubt that the ball was in.

After she cracked that ace, Serena jumped for joy. Did anyone else see something touching in the way she landed so clumsily, flat on both her feet? That shot put Serena in charge for good; and it confirmed what I had tweeted not long before: Can the Shotmaker beat the Server? I don’t think so. . .

I also felt that the way Serena let Henin back into the match in the second set, with that uncharacteristic 0-30 double-fault, is relevant here. You live by the serve, you die by the serve. It’s as basic a rule as you can find in tennis, and I was glad to see it re-affirmed in such stark terms.

Both women played impressive tennis, but I keep returning to the same thing (as I have ever since I started writing this blog). The serve is the foundation of the game, and as it’s the only shot over which a player has complete control, even if he or she is at a disadvantage when it comes to naked power. All the pretty backhands and lovely touch volleys in the world aren’t enough to ensure that you’ll get the job done if you can’t take care of your own serve -  or take away your opponent’s. And when you can do neither, you’re fighting a battle you’re destined to lose.

That torrid streak Henin put together to win the second set was truly impressive; it was insuperable shotmaking. But very few matches are won on shotmaking skill, and the disparity between Henin’s shotmaking and the quality of her serve is striking, and it keeps me from feeling overly sorry for her. It’s a hard, harsh game sometimes; it will punish you and deny you the ability to get away with anything, provided your opponent is of sufficiently high quality. And there’s no better player in the world these days, and for some time now, than Serena.

Some of you may not agree, but I don’t just think Serena won; I think some measure of tennis justice was served.

Enjoy the men’s final, everyone!

– Pete

What a difference a year makes. In 2009, the wretched women’s championship was effectively over by the time the late arrivers had shuffled into Rod Laver Arena on the first changeover. In a deflating final that saw Serena Williams annihilate a hopeless, helpless and hapless Dinara Safina 6-0, 6-3, very few points, let alone games, were competitive. When Serena, inexplicably, thanked Safina for “putting on such a good show for women’s tennis” during the trophy ceremony, the unlucky Saturday night spectators groaned at the preposterousness of her remark: The painfully lopsided laugher of a final had lasted just 59 drama-free minutes.

Happily, this year’s ticketholders got their money’s worth. The up-and-down final saw world No. 1 and top seed Serena Williams conquer comeback queen Justine Henin in three tense sets. By the end of the opening game, in which Serena fought back from double break point down to, after four deuces, hold serve, it was clear that both players were in formidable form. And the first-rate tennis that was showcased over the next two hours was evidence not only of Williams’s and Henin’s physical gifts, but also of their mental fortitude.

Though she was playing in just her second tournament back from retirement, Henin looked like she’d never been away. Her adjusted serve is still a work in progress (she got only 50 percent of her first serves in), but she hung in all the baseline rallies with Serena, matching power with power. Henin’s one-handed backhand is as gorgeous as ever, and her forehand looked even more lethal than it had in 2007.

But more impressive than the fact that her tennis wasn’t negatively affected by her absence is the fact that she is still as much of a fighter as she was pre-retirement. Competing in her first Grand Slam final in two-and-a-half years, Henin didn’t appear to suffer any emotional lapses. She could have been forgiven for getting discouraged after the first set, in which she squandered two break points in the first game, another in the third game, and two more in the fifth before finally getting a break (to even the set) with Serena serving in the seventh. Henin was broken at 4-5 for that first set, and when she went down 15-40 in her first service game of the second, one got the sense that the match might be over in a hurry. Instead, the gritty Belgian gutted out a hold and then broke Serena at love to regain momentum and rouse the crowd, which was fully behind her the whole night.

As good as it is for the game to have Henin’s talent and tenacity back on center stage, it was Serena’s mettle that ultimately won her a fifth Australian Open title tonight. There’s no doubt that Serena is a superior player. But for all her weapons—the serve, the bludgeoned groundstrokes, the athleticism—her steely resolve may be her most important asset. Serena has established a stellar 12-3 record in Grand Slam finals largely because she has the ability to summon her best tennis when the match is on the line. Tonight, fighting a sore hamstring and facing an ardently pro-Henin crowd (and a fitter opponent), Serena still managed to bring her best tennis in the decisive points of the third set.

After Henin had reeled off 15 straight points, a run that started in the seventh game of the second set and lasted into the second game of the third, Serena was able to quell the momentum and reassert her game, firing one of 12 aces on the night for an emphatic hold for 1-1. Henin and Serena exchanged breaks in the next two games, but from 2-2 forward, Serena played championship tennis, winning 16 of the final 22 points against a fading Henin. Serving for the championship at 5-2, Serena hit two aces and a service winner.
 
“My mental game is really strong,” she explained afterwards, when asked about the source of her competitive resolve. “My dad always said that tennis is 70 percent mental, and I believe that mentally I’m probably one of the toughest on the tour.”

That toughness has now won Serena 12 Grand Slam singles titles, a mark that ties her with Billie Jean King for sixth on the all-time list. Tonight, Serena was correct to express her admiration for King during another otherwise unfortunate victory speech, which was bookended with references to God and Gatorade. But though her poorly timed plug for her sponsor was as distasteful as last year’s Federer-Nadal ceremony was poignant, the night was ultimately a triumphant one for Serena. She and Henin are athletes who perform best when the competitive stakes are highest. And that ability to be clutch is the reason Williams is the 2010 Australian Open champion.

“You have this [determination] at the beginning, but you can improve a lot,” a disappointed but composed Henin said afterwards when discussing her mental game. “I was quite fragile when I was younger, then got really stronger in the important situations. And Serena proved again that she has it.”