Australian Tennis Magazine - February 2010

FEBRUARY 2010

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CAN HURT HEWITT

FIGHT BACK?

SERENA WILLIAMS UNSTOPPABLE SUPERPOWER

S! BONUNIS

N IN 2 TE OR TF T-SHIR RS READE

JUSTINE HENIN MANY HAPPY RETURNS

AUSTRALIAN OPEN

BREAKING ALL RECORDS

YOUR GAME • • • • •

TIPS FOR A TOP SERVE WARM UPS & WIND DOWNS BEAT A LEFT-HANDER MAINTAIN YOUR MOMENTUM STOSUR’S FOREHAND

ROGER FEDERER PRINT POST APPROVED PP 349181/00187

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THE LEGEND GROWS

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FEBRUARY 2010 FEATURES

VOL 35 No.2

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Australian Open 2010: Breaking All Records

New highs from our favourite players were matched by new highs in Australian Open attendance figures.

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Roger Federer and the

Class of 2010

Keen students like Andy Murray are determined to reach the top of the class, but it seems nobody can outclass the master.

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S erena Williams: Unstoppable

A fifth Melbourne Park win for Serena Williams showed that as the competition intensifies, so too does her unbreakable competitive spirit.

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Chinese Ambassadors

A new world order was established as charismatic Chinese women Li Na and Zheng Jie made their mark in Australia.

Australian Tennis Magazine | February 2010

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FEBRUARY 2010 REGULARS 7

Top Spin

16

Your Serve

45

Court Talk

49

My Game

61

My Coach

72

Rankings

74

76

Scoreboard Club of the Month

FROM THE EDITOR Court was among the many t was fitting that Margaret erer ena Williams and Roger Fed legends who watched Ser ther Grand Slam glory at add to their history with fur usl y tennis world was simultaneo Australian Open 2010. The Slam rsary of Court’s 1970 Grand cel ebrating the 40th annive ce been that onl y one pla yer has sin sweep, and while the fact – it was also ement – Steffi Graf in 1988 abl e to match that achiev st qualified erer are the two pla yers mo clear that Serena and Fed to repeat the rare feat. to his lbourne with many threats Roger Federer arrived in Me artistry in a ponded with unima ginabl e ma jor dominance, but res There were ered one of the best ever. game that’s already consid yed her ena, who once again displa similar superlatives for Ser threats to she staved off determined indomitable will to win as h Australian Open crown. claim her 12th ma jor and fift with t the competition increases Roger and Serena know tha antage of h of them also holds the adv every tournament, but eac to have s on their respective tours being the onl y active pla yer nt already. won every ma jor tourname them that Grand Slams are Margaret Court would tell she’d e easily. At the same time, achievements that don’t com ned y can do it, it’s the recrow have to know that if anybod s.

Australian Open champion Slam ena Williams claim a Grand Ser Can Roger Federer or ag.com.au thoughts to editor@tennism sweep in 2010? Email your

I

VIVIENNE CHRISTIE, Editor

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Australian Tennis Magazine | February 2010

EDITOR CONSULTING EDITOR ASSISTANT EDITOR ART DIRECTOR ADVERTISING MANAGER ADMINISTRATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER MY COACH CONTENT PHOTOGRAPHS

COVER PHOTO

Vivienne Christie Alan Trengove Daniela Toleski Naomi O’Bryan Jackie Cunningham Sherryn Dove Travis Atkinson, Karen Clydesdale Getty Images, John Anthony (All photographs by Getty Images unless specified) Getty Images

Australian Tennis Magazine is published monthly by TENNIS AUSTRALIA LTD, Private Bag 6060, Richmond, Vic 3121. Ph: (03) 9914 4200 Email: editor@tennismag.com.au Distributed by Network Distribution Company Printed in Australia by Webstar The views expressed in Australian Tennis Magazine are not necessarily those held by Tennis Australia. While the utmost care is taken in compiling the information contained in this publication, Tennis Australia is not responsible for any loss or injury occurring as a result of any omissions in either the editorial or advertising appearing herein.

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Serena Williams...

Unstoppable Serena Williams’ 12th Grand Slam victory at Australian Open 2010 elevated her further among the game’s greats – and as the competition intensifies, so too does her remarkable athleticism and will to win. By Vivienne Christie

T

he numbers will tell a powerful story when future generations look back on the career of Serena Williams. Twelve Grand Slam singles titles, millions of dollars in prize money – she eclipsed $US 30 million in Melbourne – and a swathe of tournaments won on every possible surface.

In equalling

Billie Jean King’s major record with a fifth Australian Open title, Serena underlined her status as the true No. 1 of her generation – for now, represented in the WTA Tour rankings, but undeniable even when the rankings system doesn’t quite point in her favour.

What the numbers will never quite capture is the depth of Serena’s fierce competitive spirit and the ability to combine her superb physical weapons with an unbreakable mental edge. At times, that’s created controversy, as evidenced by her entering Australian Open 2010 in the shadows of her US Open default.

Mostly, though, such fighting qualities have seen Serena triumph despite every possible disadvantage.

In each of her five Melbourne Park victories, the American has claimed astonishing victories from the most difficult situations: in 2003 she saved two match points to defeat Kim Clijsters in the semi-final; 2005 saw her dismiss two more match points against Maria Sharapova; in 2007 the renowned fighter recovered from a 6-1, 5-3 deficit against Nadia

Petrova, while 2009 saw her trailling Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-5, 5-3 in the quarter-finals.

In 2010, it was Belarusian Victoria Azarenka who had the powerful champion on the ropes, taking a 6-4, 4-0 lead in their quarter-final before Serena clawed her way back to a 4-6, 7-6 (4), 2-6 victory. “I know she’s gonna fight until the last point,” the 21-year-old said later.

“She was really in the zone ... she knows how to handle herself.”

Other challenges came from Serena’s own body, which became more heavily bandaged through every round. Entering with a hamstring injury she’d suffered in Sydney, there was also a calf complaint, her ankles were customarily strapped and after a heavy fall in the quarter-final, Serena added a wrist injury to the list. “I don’t know any athlete who doesn’t at any point play in pain,” Serena commented. “That’s the thing about being an athlete, you go and you play – you don’t always play 100 per cent, and that’s what makes it special.”

The other challenge was public sentiment, which in several cases rested largely with Serena’s opposition. First there was the favouritism afforded to local Samantha Stosur in the first round – although Serena dismissed that in her 65-minute 6-4, 6-2 win – and two rounds later, a semi-final against Chinese woman Li Na, who forged her way into crowd hearts with her obvious character and fighting spirit, which saw her push the top seed to two tiebreakers.

With a large percentage of Melbourne’s Chinese community courtside to support Li and her countrywoman Jie Zheng in the other semi-final, Serena must have felt like she’d battled the crowd as much as her clearly capable opponent.

Still it was nothing compared to the one-sided crowd she experienced in the final against Justine Henin, who found unprecedented public support in Australian Tennis Magazine | February 2010

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