Serena Williams: Steffi Graf’s record was not on my mind

Angelique Kerber knows she faces a major challenge to win another grand slam title after her sensational Australian Open victory over Serena Williams.

But Kerber built a 2-0 lead in the third set, and after Williams caught up to 2-all, Kerber raced out to a 5-2 lead.

Elena Vesnina and Bruno Soares won the last four points of the match tiebreaker to capture the mixed doubles championship at the Australian Open with 6-4, 4-6, 10-5 win over Coco Vandeweghe and Hora Tecau.It was Soares’ second doubles title in 18 hours at Melbourne Park – he and partner Jamie Murray beat Daniel Nestor and Radek Stepanek 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 in a match that ended after midnight Saturday.

“You played the best at this tournament”, said a gracious Serena after the match.

World Number One Serena Williams was looking to defend her title against Angelique Kerber. Then let’s see what will happen, I have no idea.

“This is actually the biggest thing what I learn also in these two weeks, to go for it. Of course you will have some losses in your career, as well, and also tough moments still”. But Kerber, inspired by a good luck message from Graf, knew all the pressure was on her opponent and she mercilessly exploited her weaknesses in a thriller at Rod Laver Arena.

The 17-year-old Anderson was the fifth Australian in the last decade to win the junior title, joining the likes of Nick Kyrgios (2013) and Bernard Tomic (2008) as champion. She said her victory against the former World number one Belarusian had given her enough motivation.

Now, to beat the all-time record set by Steffi Graf, Serena Williams will have to step up her game at French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.

“I mean, every time I walk in this (press conference) room, everyone expects me to win every single match, every single day of my life”, she told her post-match press conference.

But psychology seemed to work in the German’s favour when Kerber took the opening set 6-4, after breaking early in the set.

Somewhere in Las Vegas, Graf would doubtless have been cheering her on and Germany’s greatest ever player, who had been in contact with Kerber throughout the event, wishing her well, sent her a congratulatory text soon after. But Serena answers with a sharp angle, only for the German to outdo her with a attractive backhand, en route to a break and 2-1 lead.

“First of all, I would like to say congratulations to Serena”. “My dream was always to win a grand slam and my second dream was to be No1”. You really deserve it. Congrats! “As much as I would like to be a robot, I’m not”.

“I think I helped Steffi right now”, she said smiling, when asked about preserving Graf’s record. But I did think that she would win the 2015 U.S. Open and 2016 Australian Open championships, and the top-ranked women’s player lost in matches in which she was a heavy favorite, so I could be wrong. It spelled the end of the road for the American as Kerber held her nerve to win her first Grand Slam when Serena put another volley long. Radwanska began her year at the Shenzhen Open, where she won the title, and looked in solid form through five matches in Melbourne before running into a World No. 1 playing some of her best tennis.