Mighty Meeka

This week some of the top WTA players are squaring off in Sydney in preparation for next week's Australian Open. Serena Williams faced Avarane Rezai (who?) from France, who is ranked 27 in the world. So, get this: Rezai took the first set 6-3 and was up 5-2 in the second. Things didn't look good for the world #1 and defending Australian Open champion.

But then? Meeka (as Serena's father calls her) dug in as few players can do. She came back and won the second set 7-5 and then won the third 6-4. Talk about mental toughness.

"Was I down that far? I didn't even realize," said Williams, in an on-court interview. "I was thinking, 'What time can I practice tomorrow at Melbourne?'"

Serena will face Elena Dementieva in the Sydney final. Should be a great match.

Serena's triumph, pt. 2

This from Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated:

Though overshadowed by Agassi-gate (is it just reflexive to add "gate" to any scandal?), there was a significant event played last week, the WTA Sony Ericsson Championships. Serena Williams beat Venus Williams in the final and, more important, will finish the year ranked No. 1. Consider this a rare and much-needed dose of sanity.

Nobody does it better

At the year-end Sony Ericsson Championships, Serena was in the zone. The zen zone. In four matches, she only dropped one set. She beat Venus in the finals yesterday 6-4, 7-6(4). After Dinara Safina spent much of 2009 ranked #1 without winning a Slam, Serena's win here should put an end to those tiresome conversations (and blog posts) about who the real best woman player is in the world. Is there really any doubt?

Keepin' it real

Serena was interviewed in Cincinnatti by Simon Hattenstone of London's Guardian UK. Nice piece. Her memoir, On the Line, hits bookstores on Tuesday, Sept. 1.

Fallen heroes (or revenge)

When you're a baseball fan, it's natural to have a rooting interest, the home-town team. In the case of tennis, hardcore fans have their faves (and, as I have stated here, I'm a big fan of the the man from Majorca and the the brasher of the Williams sisters). So, today was a double blow when Serena lost in the semis to Elena Dementieva, the number-four seed in Toronto and Rafa went down to Novak Djokovic in Cincinnati (also in the semis). The matches had some superficial similarities. Both Williams and Nadal had great victories the previous day. Serena handily defeated Lucie Safarova yesterday, making lots of first serves and finishing the match in 57 minutes (6-3, 6-2). And Rafa beat Thomas Berdych (a tough, 6'5" German player who's troubled him in the past) in a tight two-setter. And both Dementieva and Djokovic were narrowly defeated the last time they met their respective competition (the Russian in a Wimbledon semi against Serena in which the latter saved several match points, and the Serb in Madrid in a hotly contested match against Nadal).

Elena Dementieva is a player to be reckoned with. She's tightened up her once error-riddled serve and has incredible groundstrokes and movement. It's no accident the Russian is ranked fourth in the world. Dementieva beat Serena decisively today: 7-6(2), 6-1. Serena wasn't getting her first serve in much, and she was mis-hitting forehands. Lots of unforced errors. Just looking at her, I could tell she lacked belief. Frequently tennis commentators remark on the fact that Serena and Venus go to the wall in the majors, and lack that special fight in the masters events. It's hard to account for Serena's loss today. That's not to take anything away from Elena Dementieva, who played smart, gorgeous tennis. Often Serena is able to rally herself when she's down. Not today Serena tweeted a few hours ago: "I'm a deadbeat. And a loser."

I can not imagine Rafa Nadal, whom Serena says she models herself upon, ever uttering those words, because he always plays hard and never stops trying. That's why he's number one in my book. The event in Cincinnati is his second since returning after seven weeks off spent rehabbing his knees.

Djokovic looked sharp tonight and came out very aggressive, winning the first set decisively (6-1). Nadal struggled with each and every service game. Nadal's topspin shots landed right in Djokovic's strike zone. Also, Rafa was playing waaaay behind the baseline, giving up a lot of the court. He stood much further back to receive Djokovic's serve than he did last night with Berdych. Not a good game plan. Nadal did better in the second set (4-6) but just didn't have what it took to come back. He was wearing a piece of tape on his abdomen. His serves were slow, leading to speculation that he was not 100 percent. Nonetheless, in his press conference he said that he felt positive about how well he did in Montreal (quarters) and Cincinnati (semis). And who can fault this assessment after the weird, unfortunate turns his year has taken? After his win at the Australian Open he dominated throughout most of the clay court season. And now he's fighting to return to form. Vamos!