The performance of Serena Williams in Indian Wells is anything but self-evident and shows once again what an exceptional athlete she is. For tennis, their comeback is a great thing.
Nobody really knew where Serena Williams was. At the invitational tournament in Abu Dhabi at the end of last year, where she made a brief comeback after her pregnancy, she seemed cumbersome and untrained. Her double appearance at the Fed Cup in Asheville was also critically reviewed.
She would only return to the tour in top form, you could hear from her camp – the belief that this would already be the case in Indian Wells was not high, especially after the difficult birth of daughter Olympia and her aftermath became known.
Starting a comeback at the age of 36 is a Herculean task. After Williams’ past months, it will take a lot more to do. Apart from all the hardship on and off the pitch, above all the motivation must be right. She had never had any thoughts of resignation, Williams continued.
Already when the pregnancy was known, it would have been clear that her story was not yet told to the end. A resignation is a case of:”One morning I wake up and realize: I don’t want to do this anymore, I don’t want to win any more, I don’t want to go out there any more. Williams says,”One day I’ll know – and that hasn’t happened yet.”
The record-breaking woman of the scene has now delivered two matches and surprised her after the lesser expectations. Of course, she is still a long way from her best form, but even in her first match against Zarina Diyas, she convinced with her serve power, more points than mistakes and the ability to be there when it counts – actually a feature that requires match practice.
Williams also won the critical points against Kiki Bertens, scored a break in round one twice and now won a third round duel with Sister Venus. She said she was still a bit rusty,”I still make mistakes that I don’t normally make,”she said. And:”It’s a trial run. Even with the baby, it’s a test of traveling.”
What Williams achieves is once again remarkable and shows what an exceptional athlete she is. But it’s also clear why she does everything again, not afraid of the long way to return without ranking: Williams, 23 singles Grand Slam victories hard, knows about the record books – “unfortunately”as she once explained.
Margaret Court is in the lead with 24 majors, even though this number is to be enjoyed with caution: Court has won 11 in Australia alone when the biggest rivals did not travel there yet; in addition, they won a total of 13 titles as a professional, when amateurs were still blocked for the Grand Slams.
Williams is for many people already the “GOAT” – “The Greatest Player Of All Time”. That she is willing to officially secure her place as the greatest in the history of tennis is clear since the days of Indian Wells. In Wimbledon, at the latest, she will complete the mission “24. Major Titles”.