Serena Williams Has 'Nothing To Lose' Ahead Of 10th Wimbledon Final
Serena Williams remains the queen of the centre court at Wimbledon after she cruised to her tenth final at SW19 despite it being just her fourth tournament back since giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia.
The American is yet to drop a match at Wimbledon in three years with her last loss at the All England Club coming in 2014 – her third round defeat to Alize Cornet. She won the title in 2015 and 2016 while skipping the tournament in 2017 as she was pregnant at the time.
Williams was seeded 25th coming into the tournament and has thus far dropped just one set on her way to the finals. The 36-year-old dispatched Julia Gorges in straight sets in just 70 minutes and will face Angelique Kerber in the finals after the German dispatched Jelena Ostapenko in similar fashion.
The 23-time women’s singles Grand Slam champion admits it is a pleasure to be in the showpiece event just 314 days after giving birth to her daughter. Williams also opened up about the difficulties she faced after admitting she almost “did not make it” due to the complications during child birth.
“This was not inevitable for me,” Williams said after the match, as quoted by ESPN. “I had a difficult birth, multiple surgeries, I almost didn't make it. There was a time I could barely walk to my mailbox. It's such a pleasure and a joy [to be in the final] because less than a year ago, I was going through so much.”
Williams has won the Wimbledon women’s singles title on seven occasions in the past and will be favorite despite Kerber being the higher seed. The aura the American exudes at SW19 has been matched by few in the years gone by.
Also, coincidentally, the clash against the German – world number 10 – will be the rematch of the 2016 summit clash when Williams won in straight sets. But match has happened since then including Kerber ending the 2016 season as the world number one.
However, Williams revealed the lack of expectation on her unlike previous years has allowed her to play freely without any restrictions and admitted she will continue to do the same when she faces Kerber on centre court on Saturday.
"It's crazy. I don't even know how to feel because I literally didn't think I'd do this well in my fourth tournament back," the American added. "I don't have anything to lose and I feel I can play so free. That's what I'm doing.”
Williams will join Margaret Court as the most successful Grand Slam player if she wins her 24th major title Saturday, while the 2000-points she will earn will also bring her back into the top-20 in the WTA Rankings.
The American is not keen on stopping at 24 and is keen to continue to amass more major titles, but pulled her expectations back after admitting she still has one more match to play and it is likely to be a tough one against Kerber.
"I don't want to limit myself," Williams said. "I think that's what I was doing in the past. I was limiting myself. It's just a number. I want to get as many as I can, starting with ...” Williams paused before admitting: "I still have a match to win. So I'm not even there yet."
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