Sport
Serena Williams defeats Caroline Wozniacki to lift her 6th U.S. Open title
“Congratulations to Caroline, she knows the struggles I have had. She’s a real nice person, a great friend. We text each other all the time. “You will win a Grand Slam title soon,” Williams said.
“Serena, you deserve it. You played better than me today and you deserve to be the champion,” Wozniacki said. “You are an inspiration on the court and off it. You’re an unbelievable champion and a great friend. The drinks are on you tonight.”
With so much on the line for each woman, the first set was a tense affair with few fireworks. After saving a break point in the first game with an ace, Williams made Wozniacki pay for a tight first service game, in which Wozniacki double faulted twice.
Williams seized the break and a 2-0 lead with a pair of stinging service returns. It signalled a run of 5 breaks of serve that ended with Williams holding for a 5-2 lead, heaping the pressure on Wozniacki to hold for the first time. She did, fending off one break point to force Williams to serve it out.
With a set in hand, Williams was moving more freely. Even luck wasn’t going Wozniacki’s way, as a net cord bounce in Williams’ favor ended a 20-shot rally to give the American a break chance in the first game of the second – which she promptly converted.
Wozniacki’s vaunted defensive skills were on full display as she doggedly ran down balls, but she couldn’t match Williams’ power, skill and ability to conjure winners from all areas of the court. Williams finished with 29 winners to Wozniacki’s four, belting a forehand to give herself match point.
She finished off her good friend after one hour and 15 minutes with a break of serve in the final game, dropping to her back and covering her face with her hands after Wozniacki fired a backhand long.
