Twitter
Categories
Archives
9:34AM

Newsday (N.Y.): Serena cries after Wimbledon 1st-round win

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday


WIMBLEDON, England — She hit the winning shot, and then the moment hit Serena Williams. Sitting courtside, she cried and cried and cried.

She was back where she wanted to be, defending her Wimbledon championships of the past two years. Back where she feared she might never be.

Williams completed a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory over Aravane Rezai of France in her return Tuesday to the All England Club, virtually her return to tennis.

It was only her third match, all within the past week, after what Williams called "a disaster year," in which she missed nearly a year because of a severely cut foot, blood clots in her lungs that she said were life-threatening and a hematoma that had to be removed surgically.

"It definitely was so emotional for me," said Serena, at 29 the younger of the two sisters who have dominated the women's game for a decade. Serena has four Wimbledon singles titles, Venus, 31, has five. "You know throughout the last 12 months, I've been through a lot of things that's not normal. So it's been a long, arduous road. To stand up still is pretty awesome."

Williams, who is the seventh seed for this year's tournament, lost the first two games to the 24-year-old Rezai but won the next five. Asked if she were nervous before her first Grand Slam competition since beating Vera Zvonareva in last year's Wimbledon final, Williams said: "No. It was a little bit of not playing. I think I got a little tight. Not necessarily nervous."

Williams said Sunday that she injects herself with a drug called Lovenox, which combats deep vein thrombosis, before flying. She said she also has to wear "socks that aren't very attractive."

The experiences, stepping on a glass in Berlin a few days after her 2010 Wimbledon victory, and the medical diagnoses have changed Williams' perspective.

"I just learned you can never take any moment for granted," she said. "I've been doing so much just to try to appreciate every moment. When things happen, you appreciate people that are around you or may not be around. It's eye-opening as well as it makes you tougher."

Serena has won each of the four majors and a total of 13 majors overall.

"I'm hoping to play better," she said of her opener. "Now I feel like I can take a deep breath. I've been practicing better than I played today, so hopefully, I can get back to doing the right thing."

With no tears.

- - - - - -

http://www.newsday.com/sports/tennis/serena-cries-after-wimbledon-1st-round-win-1.2973636
Copyright © 2011 Newsday. All rights reserved.

PrintView Printer Friendly Version

EmailEmail Article to Friend

Reader Comments

There are no comments for this journal entry. To create a new comment, use the form below.

PostPost a New Comment

Enter your information below to add a new comment.

My response is on my own website »
Author Email (optional):
Author URL (optional):
Post:
 
Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong>
« Newsday (N.Y.): Isner wins Wimbledon rematch with Mahut | Main | SF Examiner: San Francisco Giants mired in offensive slump »