Sport
Serena Williams beats Jelena Jankovic to win Family Circle
“The key was I served very well and made a lot of first serves in, so she couldn’t attack it,” Jankovic said.
Williams won the next eight straight points to take a 2-0 lead.
It was the second straight tournament in which Williams dropped the opening set in the final before digging in for victory. A week ago, she lost 6-4 to Maria Sharapova and then won 12 of the next 15 games to win the Sony Open.
Jankovic tried to bounce back in the decisive set and was ahead 1-0. But Williams took the next three games to regain control. Williams pounded a 110 mph serve that drove Jankovic wide and then put away the ball near the net to take the match.
For Williams, it was her 49th career singles title, moving within four of Monica Seles for ninth place on the WTA’s list. It wasn’t the easiest run to the top, though. Midweek rain wiped out much of Thursday’s schedule, meaning Williams had to win twice on Friday to make to the semifinals.
Once there, Williams had to face big sister Venus and responded with a 6-1, 6-2 victory, the most one-sided match in the siblings’ long rivalry.
Williams earned US$125,000 for her third Family Circle Cup crown, also winning in 2008 and ’12.
Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
