Serena Williams settles outdated scores in newest rout of Maria Sharapova
D’Arcy MaineESPN
For a quick second on Monday evening underneath the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium, it seemed as if the long-hyped however overdramatized Serena Williams-Maria Sharapova rivalry would possibly truly dwell as much as expectations.
The 2 met midcourt earlier than the match, joined by Billie Jean King, for a ceremonial . Separated by the web and King and a younger fan, the opponents barely glanced in each other’s route. Williams walked away earlier than everybody’s smiles had an opportunity to fade. The stress was palpable.
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As soon as the match began, the near-capacity crowd appeared to react to each level — oohing and ahhing nearly each time the gamers’ rackets related with the ball. Williams, wearing a skintight black physique go well with that made her appear to be a superhero, took the primary sport. Sharapova took the second.
It was six minutes of aggressive tennis. However it would not final. Williams surged over the following 18 minutes and took the following 5 video games for the set.
Sharapova’s trademark grunt acquired louder and extra pronounced, however she had no solutions for Williams’ energy. Sharapova seemed dazed at occasions and stared at her racket in disbelief.
The second set wasn’t a lot completely different. Williams took the match 6-1, 6-1 in slightly below an hour of play.
When requested afterward if she thought of Sharapova a rival, Williams hesitated briefly earlier than answering in maybe essentially the most gracious approach she might.
“I do not know what the that means of ‘rivalry’ is,” she mentioned. “I really feel everybody I play is a rival. Whether or not I am 20-2 or Zero-1, it is all the time fascinating.”
In actuality, this can be a rivalry in title solely. Williams now owns a 20-2 profession report over Sharapova and has gained the previous 19 conferences. It is the longest energetic win streak on the WTA Tour. Sharapova hasn’t overwhelmed Williams since November 2004, when Usher and Alicia Keys dominated the charts with “My Boo” and “The Incredibles” (the primary one) was the highest film in America. Coco Gauff was simply an toddler.
And but, this assembly felt way more vital than that lifetime report would point out.
“They carry themselves like fierce rivals, as if it is a lot nearer than it truly is,” mentioned 21-time Grand Slam doubles champion and present ESPN analyst Pam Shriver. “This matchup pursuits extra than simply tennis followers; it transcends the game and may be very a lot half of popular culture. The common individual does not know simply how one-sided it’s. They only know these are two of essentially the most well-known names in tennis, when it comes to industrial success and making information off the courtroom.”
Naomi Osaka, the defending champion and world No. 1, summed it up greatest throughout her information convention on Saturday earlier than play started.
“In fact I will watch it,” she mentioned. “I do know you all are going to observe it. I believe everybody in New York goes to observe it.”
The rivalry started in 2004, when Sharapova, now 32, beat Williams within the Wimbledon remaining. The victory catapulted Sharapova into the game’s elite — and, as she speculates in her 2017 ebook “Unstoppable: My Life So Far,” into Williams’ dangerous graces.
“To me, the true reply was there, on this locker room, the place I used to be altering and she or he was bawling,” she wrote. “I believe Serena hated me for being the thin child who beat her, in opposition to all odds, at Wimbledon.”
Shriver believes Sharapova’s win on the All England Membership is one thing Williams, 37, has by no means forgotten. It was the primary time she had misplaced to anybody apart from her sister Venus in a Grand Slam remaining, and at 6-1, 6-Four, it wasn’t shut.
“The loss at Wimbledon form of shook Serena,” Shriver mentioned. “Ever since then, she has been on excessive alert, because the very first level, at any time when she performs her. She all the time means enterprise on the subject of revenge, nevertheless it is likely to be just a little bit extra in opposition to Sharapova due to that. To not point out, there’s not precisely any love misplaced between them off the courtroom, both.”
Williams usually has prevented speaking about Sharapova, however the two did have a confrontation by way of the press in 2013. Whereas Williams by no means specified who she was referring to, a Rolling Stone interview implied she was speaking about Sharapova and her then-boyfriend Grigor Dimitrov when she mentioned: “She begins each interview with, ‘I am so completely satisfied. I am so fortunate’ — it is so boring. She’s nonetheless not going to be invited to the cool events. And hey, if she desires to be with the man with a black coronary heart, go for it.”
Sharapova responded by suggesting Williams was courting her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou.
“If she desires to speak about one thing private, perhaps she ought to discuss her relationship and her boyfriend that was married and is getting a divorce and has children,” Sharapova mentioned throughout a Wimbledon information convention.
So, it may not be an on-court rivalry, however there’s nearly definitely a grudge. To be clear, this isn’t the matchup it as soon as was. Each have struggled with accidents recently and are nearing the top of their careers. Nonetheless, Williams — 5 years older than Sharapova — continues to be reaching Grand Slam finals and contending for titles. Williams has performed in three of the previous 5 main championship matches, and she or he was within the remaining at Toronto earlier this month (earlier than retiring with a again damage). Sharapova made her final Grand Slam remaining look on the Australian Open in 2015, the place she misplaced to — watch for it — Williams.
Williams has dominated throughout their careers, and Monday’s match was no completely different. She had 5 aces and gained twice as many factors (56 to 28) and 5 of six break factors. Sharapova did not win a single level on her second serve.
“I believed she performed effectively. I believed she served very well,” Sharapova mentioned afterward. “Discovered her spots very well. Did not really feel like we acquired into too many lengthy rallies. I believe the 1-2 punch. She gained a majority of these factors. If I noticed the share of that, I believe that is the place she damage me loads.”
Sharapova insists she nonetheless loves enjoying tennis and believes she can be profitable once more on the courtroom, regardless of her current string of disappointing outcomes.
When requested how she would really feel about shedding 19 straight matches to 1 single opponent, even Williams, who is never perplexed, appeared briefly shocked.
“Gosh, I by no means considered it like that,” Williams mentioned. “She retains popping out and retains combating and retains discovering other ways to remain within the match. So, yeah …”
Her voice trailed off earlier than she answered a query about new coaching strategies.
Sharapova, in the meantime, already had exited into the New York evening, getting ready for a future assembly with the foe she will’t fairly work out.