Tennis-Serena Williams repeats as U.S. Open champion

NEW YORK, Sept 8 | Mon Sep 9, 2013 12:44am BST

NEW YORK, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Serena Williams repeated as U.S. Open women's champion by holding off a battling Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-5 6-7(6) 6-1 in a windblown final in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday.

Williams bounded in a series of jumping jack leaps after Azarenka's backhand sailed long on the second match point of the thrilling, two-hour 45-minute final.

In winning the title rematch against second-seeded Azarenka, world number one Williams claimed her fifth U.S. Open crown and 17th career grand slam singles title.

The big-hitting American, who turns 32 later this month, became the oldest U.S. Open women's winner since tennis turned professional 45 years ago, eclipsing Australian Margaret Court, who was 31 years and 55 days when she won the title in 1973.

(Reporting by Larry Fine, Editing by Gene Cherry)

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US Open - Williams shows no signs of fading, matches Federer

Initially frustrated by a swirling wind at Arthur Ashe Stadium and shaken by Azarenka's second set comeback from 4-1 down, Williams regained the momentum in the third set with her power and range of strokes propelling her to a 17th Grand Slam title.

Williams will be 32 later this month but she seems far from even contemplating life after tennis.

"I feel great. I have never felt better. I feel really fit," she said. "I can play a tournament like this, singles, doubles, with tough, tough schedules. For the most part, I felt really good.

"I haven't felt like this in a number of years. I'm excited about the possibilities. I don't know what can happen. I just keep playing and do the best that I can."

Certainly Azarenka, who put up a brave fight throughout and looks easily the most likely to take over Williams' mantle whenever she does retire, had no doubts about the qualities of her opponent.

"She's a champion, and she knows how to repeat that. She knows what it takes to get there," said the Belarusian.

"I think it's incredible what she's achieving. She's playing definitely her best tennis right now. It is just really exciting for me to be able to compete against that type of player who can be the greatest of all time."

The 17th Slam victory puts Williams on a par with Roger Federer among contemporary players of both genders and brings her within one title of Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert, the fourth most successful women of all-time.

"It's an honour to be even with Roger," said Williams, "He's been such a great champion throughout the years, and he's just an unbelievable competitor and he's still playing, and he can probably still win more. ...

"He's just been so incredibly consistent, so we have had really different careers," Williams said.

"Then to be compared with Chrissy and Martina - not yet, because I'm still not quite there yet. I can't necessarily compare myself to them, because, you know, numbers-wise they're still greater."

But while she is willing to contemplate history, she is less fond of thinking about what all her success has brought her.

Williams picked up $3.6 million in prize money for her win combined with her bonus from securing the U.S. Open Series of events, which took her past the $50 million mark in career prize money.

"I don't play tennis for the money. I honestly love to play. I love Grand Slams," she said. "When I grew up playing tennis in Compton, I just never thought about any of this. I didn't even know all this came with everything.

"I think my dad got me into tennis because of the money, but me being naive and silly, I never thought about it."

Winning was always the aim, she said.

"I wanted to do what (sister) Venus does. I want to win and I want to do more and I want to do more," Williams said.

"To this day I have never ever picked up a check in my life. I remember back in the day before wiring they used to mail it because I just would forget it.

"Someone told me today I passed 50 (million), but half of that goes to my Uncle Sam. I love him. I'm always giving him half my money," she said with a smile.

What Williams does appreciate though is her ability to have been a winner at Arthur Ashe Stadium from the age of 17 to 31.

"I have won this tournament over three decades, '90s, the 2000s, and this one. You can only do that when you're younger and older, so I'm happy that I have had this opportunity."

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WRAPUP 1-Tennis-Serena Williams beats Azarenka in US Open final

* Williams wins 17th grand slam singles crown

* Azarenka says better player won

* Paes and Stepanek win men's doubles title

* Croatian sweep of the junior championships (Adds details, quotes)

By Larry Fine

NEW YORK, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Serena Williams repeated as U.S. Open women's champion by holding off a battling Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-5 6-7(6) 6-1 in a windblown final at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday.

Williams bounded in a series of joyous jumping jack leaps after Azarenka's backhand sailed long on the second match point of a thrilling, two-hour 45-minute final that earned her a fifth U.S. Open singles title that took her total to 17 grand slams.

The big-hitting American, who turns 32 later this month, became the oldest U.S. Open women's winner since tennis turned professional 45 years ago, eclipsing Australian Margaret Court, who was 31 years and 55 days when she won the title in 1973.

The triumph moved Williams to within one grand slam singles crown of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova for a tie for fourth place on the all-time list behind Court (24), Steffi Graf (22) and Helen Wills Moody (19).

It had looked like it was going to be plain sailing for Williams after she won a difficult first set, boosted by a late break in the 11th game for a 6-5 lead and then served out a love game before racing to a 4-1 second-set lead.

Williams, who earlier looked confounded by the gusty wind that affected service tosses and the direction of bounces off groundstrokes and was muttering to herself between points, finally settled into a rhythm in the second set.

"The wind was unbelievable," said the champion. "And it just got worse and worse and it never let up. But at this point you have to play under any circumstance."

She claimed the 4-1 lead after Azarenka double-faulted three times in the fifth and her U.S. Open repeat looked a certainty as she begun to find her range on her imposing service game that saw her serve broken only twice in six previous matches.

But Azarenka was not ready to capitulate.

"I think it was raising from the first point, the tension, the battle, the determination," the second seed said about the quality of the match. "It was really kind of like boiling the water. It felt from every point, it was rising the level."

'GREAT MATCH'

The Belarusian showed her fight and took advantage of a string of Williams errors to break right back for 4-2 and rode that momentum.

Twice Williams served for the match, at 5-4 and again at 6-5, but Azarenka rose up to break the American's serve and force a tiebreaker.

Williams took a 3-1 lead but Azarenka won five of the next six points to seize a 6-4 advantage and sent the match to a third set when Williams belted a backhand long to lose it 8-6.

"I think I got a little uptight," Williams said about squandering her chances. "I wasn't playing smart tennis. (But) you have to keep fighting for everything."

The third set stayed on serve until the fourth game when another double fault, her seventh of the match, sank Azarenka and handed Williams a 3-1 lead.

With the stadium crowd roaring their support for the home favorite, the American broke Azarenka two games later for good measure to make it 5-1 before she claimed victory when the Belarusian sent a backhand long on the second match point.

Williams blasted 36 winners in the match against 17 for Azarenka, and blasted nine aces against just two for the Belarusian, who won an impressive 10 of 15 points at the net when she stepped up the pressure on Williams.

"Victoria, you played unbelievable," said Williams at the trophy ceremony.

"What a great match and what a great person. Vika is such a great opponent, she's such a great fighter. It was never over until match point," added Williams.

The top seed collected the $2.6 million top prize and pocketed an addition $1 million bonus for having won the U.S. Open run-up series of tournaments.

Azarenka said she had been beaten by the better player.

"It is a tough loss. But the best player deserves the win today. I gave it all again this year," said Azarenka, who lost 7-5 in the third set to Williams in last year's final.

"We gave it everything we got."

In the men's doubles final, Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek were convincing winners over Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares.

The India-Czech pairing of Paes and Stepanek dominated the title match to record a 6-1 6-3 victory over their Austria-Brazil rivals.

Paes, 40, won his third U.S. Open doubles title and eighth major doubles title of his career. It was Stepanek's second major doubles win after claiming the 2012 Australian Open with Paes.

Stepanek, 34, said the win enabled them to qualify for an important goal.

"There is one thing we would like to achieve, and that's winning the world championships at the end of the year, because that's the trophy which is missing in Leander's showcase," the Czech said.

Croatia made a clean sweep of the junior singles titles when Borna Coric and Ana Konjuh posted victories at Flushing Meadows.

The fourth-seeded Coric beat Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis 3-6 6-3 6-1 in the boys' final before second-seeded Konjuh beat U.S. wildcard Tornado Black 3-6 6-4 7-6(6).

Coric, 16, said the U.S. Open would be his last junior tournament.

"I've won the slam" he said about his Sunday victory. "That was the goal at the beginning of the year."

Coric has been named to Croatia's Davis Cup team for the tie next week against Britain at Umag. (Reporting by Larry Fine, Editing by Gene Cherry/Peter Rutherford)

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US Open - Williams outlasts Azarenka to retain title in New York

Williams twice served for the title in the second set as Azarenka battled back from a 4-1 deficit.

But the Belarusian had nothing left in the third set and the world number one wrapped up the title at the third time of asking when a backhand return drifted long from Azarenka.

Williams bounded in a series of jumping jack leaps after securing the win on the second match point of the thrilling, two-hour and 45-minute final.

In winning the title rematch against second-seeded Azarenka, world number one Williams claimed her fifth US Open crown and 17th career grand slam singles title.

The big-hitting American, who turns 32 later this month, became the oldest US Open women's winner since tennis turned professional 45 years ago, eclipsing Australian Margaret Court, who was 31 years and 55 days when she won the title in 1973.

It had looked like it was going to be plain sailing for Williams after she won the first set, boosted by a late break in the 11th game for a 6-5 lead and then served out a love game.

Williams, who earlier looked confounded by the gusty wind that affected service tosses and the direction of bounces off groundstrokes, finally settled into a rhythm and surged to a 4-1 lead in the second set after Azarenka double-faulted three times in the fifth game.

But the Belarusian broke right back for 4-2 and rode that momentum.

Twice Williams served for the match, at 5-4 and again at 6-5, but Azarenka rose up to break the American's serve and force a tiebreaker.

Williams raced to a 3-1 lead in the breaker, but Azarenka won five of the next six points to seize a 6-4 lead and send the championship match to a third set when Williams belted a backhand long to lose it 8-6.

The third set stayed on serve until the fourth game when another double fault, her seventh of the match, sank Azarenka and handed Williams a 3-1 lead.

Williams broke Azarenka two game later for good measure to make it 5-1 and then claimed victory when the Belarusian sent a backhand long on the second match point.

"Victoria, you played unbelievable," said Williams at the trophy ceremony.

"What a great match and what a great person. Vika is such a great opponent, she's such a great fighter. It was never over until match point," added Williams, who collected the $2.6 million (£1.6m) top prize and pocketed an addition $1 million (£639,549) bonus for having won the US Open run-up series of tournaments.

Azarenka said she had been beaten by the better player.

"It is a tough loss. But the best player deserves the win today. I gave it all again this year," said Azarenka, who lost 7-5 in the third set to Williams in last year's final. "We gave it everything we got."

View the original article here

UPDATE 2-Tennis-Serena Williams repeats as U.S. Open champion

(Adds details)

* Williams wins 17th grand slam singles crown

* Azarenka says better player won

By Larry Fine

NEW YORK, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Serena Williams repeated as U.S. Open women's champion by holding off a battling Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-5 6-7(6) 6-1 in a windblown final at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday.

Williams bounded in a series of joyous jumping jack leaps after Azarenka's backhand sailed long on the second match point of a thrilling, two-hour 45-minute final.

In winning the title rematch against second-seeded Azarenka, world number one Williams claimed her fifth U.S. Open crown and 17th career grand slam singles title.

The big-hitting American, who turns 32 later this month, became the oldest U.S. Open women's winner since tennis turned professional 45 years ago, eclipsing Australian Margaret Court, who was 31 years and 55 days when she won the title in 1973.

The triumph moved Williams to within one grand slam singles crown of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova for a tie for fourth place on the all-time list behind Court (24), Steffi Graf (22) and Helen Wills Moody (19).

It had looked like it was going to be plain sailing for Williams after she won the first set, boosted by a late break in the 11th game for a 6-5 lead and then served out a love game.

Williams, who earlier looked confounded by the gusty wind that affected service tosses and the direction of bounces off groundstrokes and was muttering to herself between points, finally settled into a rhythm in the second set.

She surged to a 4-1 lead after Azarenka double-faulted three times in the fifth and her U.S. Open repeat looked undeniable as she had begun to find the range on her imposing service game that saw her serve broken only twice in six previous matches.

'GREAT MATCH'

But the Belarusian showed her fight and took advantage of a string of Williams errors to break right back for 4-2 and rode that momentum.

Twice Williams served for the match, at 5-4 and again at 6-5, but Azarenka rose up to defeat the American's serve and force a tiebreaker.

Williams raced to a 3-1 lead in the decider, but Azarenka won five of the next six points to seize a 6-4 lead and send the championship match to a third set when Williams belted a backhand long to lose it 8-6.

The third set stayed on serve until the fourth game when another double fault, her seventh of the match, sank Azarenka and handed Williams a 3-1 lead.

With the stadium crowd roaring their support for home-country favorite Williams, the American broke Azarenka two games later for good measure to make it 5-1 and then claimed victory when the Belarusian sent a backhand long on the second match point.

"Victoria, you played unbelievable," said Williams at the trophy ceremony.

"What a great match and what a great person. Vika is such a great opponent, she's such a great fighter. It was never over until match point," added Williams.

The top seed collected the $2.6 million top prize and pocketed an addition $1 million bonus for having won the U.S. Open run-up series of tournaments.

Azarenka said she had been beaten by the better player.

"It is a tough loss. But the best player deserves the win today. I gave it all again this year," said Azarenka, who lost 7-5 in the third set to Williams in last year's final.

"We gave it everything we got."

(Reporting by Larry Fine, Editing by Gene Cherry/Peter Rutherford)

View the original article here

US Open - Williams shows no signs of fading, matches Federer

Initially frustrated by a swirling wind at Arthur Ashe Stadium and shaken by Azarenka's second set comeback from 4-1 down, Williams regained the momentum in the third set with her power and range of strokes propelling her to a 17th Grand Slam title.

Williams will be 32 later this month but she seems far from even contemplating life after tennis.

"I feel great. I have never felt better. I feel really fit," she said. "I can play a tournament like this, singles, doubles, with tough, tough schedules. For the most part, I felt really good.

"I haven't felt like this in a number of years. I'm excited about the possibilities. I don't know what can happen. I just keep playing and do the best that I can."

Certainly Azarenka, who put up a brave fight throughout and looks easily the most likely to take over Williams' mantle whenever she does retire, had no doubts about the qualities of her opponent.

"She's a champion, and she knows how to repeat that. She knows what it takes to get there," said the Belarusian.

"I think it's incredible what she's achieving. She's playing definitely her best tennis right now. It is just really exciting for me to be able to compete against that type of player who can be the greatest of all time."

The 17th Slam victory puts Williams on a par with Roger Federer among contemporary players of both genders and brings her within one title of Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert, the fourth most successful women of all-time.

"It's an honour to be even with Roger," said Williams, "He's been such a great champion throughout the years, and he's just an unbelievable competitor and he's still playing, and he can probably still win more. ...

"He's just been so incredibly consistent, so we have had really different careers," Williams said.

"Then to be compared with Chrissy and Martina - not yet, because I'm still not quite there yet. I can't necessarily compare myself to them, because, you know, numbers-wise they're still greater."

But while she is willing to contemplate history, she is less fond of thinking about what all her success has brought her.

Williams picked up $3.6 million in prize money for her win combined with her bonus from securing the U.S. Open Series of events, which took her past the $50 million mark in career prize money.

"I don't play tennis for the money. I honestly love to play. I love Grand Slams," she said. "When I grew up playing tennis in Compton, I just never thought about any of this. I didn't even know all this came with everything.

"I think my dad got me into tennis because of the money, but me being naive and silly, I never thought about it."

Winning was always the aim, she said.

"I wanted to do what (sister) Venus does. I want to win and I want to do more and I want to do more," Williams said.

"To this day I have never ever picked up a check in my life. I remember back in the day before wiring they used to mail it because I just would forget it.

"Someone told me today I passed 50 (million), but half of that goes to my Uncle Sam. I love him. I'm always giving him half my money," she said with a smile.

What Williams does appreciate though is her ability to have been a winner at Arthur Ashe Stadium from the age of 17 to 31.

"I have won this tournament over three decades, '90s, the 2000s, and this one. You can only do that when you're younger and older, so I'm happy that I have had this opportunity."

View the original article here

Tennis - Williams wins fourth clay title of season in Bastad

It made it 28 clay court wins in a row for Serena with five of her seven 2013 titles coming on the surface - four on red clay and one on green clay (Charleston).

Larsson got off to a good start in her home tournament, breaking in the opening game, and was 3-1 in front early but the eight seeded Swede only went on to win two more games as Serena took control.

It was the 53rd WTA title of Williams' career and puts her level with Monica Seles for ninth on the all-time list in the Open era.

Meanwhile in Bad Gastein, Austria, Yvonne Meusburger delighted the home fans by winning the first title of her career against Andrea Hlavackova of Czech Republic 7-5 6-2 .

Meusburger is ranked only 86th in the world but enjoyed a fantastic tournament – not dropping a single set all week.

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