30 giugno 2004
Wimbledon
Serena Williams
remains on course for a hat-trick of Wimbledon titles after crushing
Jennifer Capriati 6-1, 6-1 in just 45 minutes on Centre Court. The disappointingly
one-sided quarter-final marks Williams' best-ever win over Capriati, and
her most convincing win since she underwent a knee operation immediately
after winning her second Wimbledon crown last year.
Capriati had defeated Serena twice in recent months, first in the Italian
Open semi-finals and then at the French Open quarter-finals. But she left
her game, and apparently her resolve, behind in the locker room, failing to
make even the slightest dent in the Williams armour. Though Serena's serving
and hitting were dynamic, the lasting memory of the match is of Capriati's
inability to chase down shots or to contrive winners of her own.
The only time Capriati, the 7th
seed, held serve was in the opening game, and even then she had to come back
from a love-30 deficit to do so. There were signs of the whirlwind to come
from Serena in her first service game with a fizzing ace and then she
effectively broke Capriati's resistance in the next game.
Five times Williams moved to break point. Four times Capriati managed to
fend off the champion, but on the fifth occasion Williams needed to do
nothing as Capriati double-faulted. That marked the end of this match as a
contest for Capriati, who never held serve again. After dropping serve to go
1-4 down Capriati donned a cap but, if anything, played even worse.
The first set was brought to a close in 24 minutes with Capriati broken
again when she struck a backhand just beyond the baseline. Serena conceded a
mere three points on serve in that set and, with her backhand generating
almost the same speed as her serves, the rout continued.
Yet another weak backhand into the net cost Capriati her serve again early
in the second set. The only ray of hope she gleaned came in the next game
when Serena double-faulted twice in succession to hand her serve to Capriati.
It almost amount to a sympathy vote.
Having been reminded that she remains occasionally fallible, Williams added
even more pace and bite to her game, breaking to love, holding to love and
then breaking again as another of Capriatri's errant backhands flew yards
over the baseline.
There was a belated flurry of
resistance from Capriati when she held two break points on the Williams
serve but, true to form, she perpetrated unforced errors on both. Serena
triumphed on her first match point with a show of sheer athleticism, diving
full length to deliver a forehand volley that Capriati returned into the net
with her opponent still prostrate on the grass.
This is only the sixth tournament for Serena since her return to tennis
following her operation and today's victory was a milestone, not only
against her keenest rival but also the highest-ranked opponent she has so
far beaten since that return. At Wimbledon she has conceded just 17 games in
five straight-sets wins now and is clearly in fine fettle.
While confessing she was "very surprised" by the ease of her win, Williams
explained: "I was really focused. I have some goals here, I am just trying
to reach them. I know when I play Jen I have to play really tough. I couldn't
let up at all."
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