'It’s About Getting Over That Hump', Serena Williams Says As She Eyes Margaret Court’s Record In Australian Open

Serena Williams aims to equal Margaret Court, the player with most Grand Slam titles, at the upcoming Australian Open.

Serena, who has not won a major since her victory in Melbourne in 2017, has insisted that she is relaxed and is confident to win the women’s singles title at the year’s opening Grand Slam.

The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion has admitted that even though being a mother to two-year-old Alexis Olympia is a priority, chasing Margaret’s record continues to drive her.

"It's meant a lot to me for a while and now it is just about getting over that one hump. I'm almost there, and I'm confident that I'll get there,” Serena told reporters in Auckland, where she is set to kick-start the season.

Serena, who will return to the Auckland WTA tournament for the first time since her terrible debut two years ago, has said she is in a confident frame of mind and determined to put the change her Auckland record to a positive one.

Her debut in Auckland in 2017 was a forgettable one where she had complained about the windy conditions and gave out some blunt interviews. Soon after her loss in the second round, she admitted that she couldn’t wait to get out of the country.

However, ahead of the season-opening tournament, Serena said the anger she felt is no more in her.

In a light-hearted conversation with the media recently, the World No. 10 player explained how she was unaware at the time that she was six weeks pregnant with her daughter Alexis Olympia.

“I'm not pregnant, as a start, so that works, so I can only do good now. I just remember it was windy and being angry, hating my now husband (Alexis Ohanian). I was like 'I can't stand you and I don't know why. Obviously, at the time, I didn't know why either ... I was six weeks pregnant and I had no idea. So looking back it's so surreal and crazy and now that I'm here, I have all of these funny memories of being miserable,” Serena added.