The 2009 Australian Open final will showcase two of the best players on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour.
The winner of Saturday night’s showdown between Serena Williams and Dinara Safina will take home the women’s title and the world number one ranking.
Tania Tchea’s Take on the Final
Semifinal Thursday saw the roof closed once more, and victorious in straight sets over in-form Russian Elena Dementieva was three-time winner Serena Williams. She looked down and out in her previous match, but we saw a calmer and more focused player this time around.
The American conceded only seven games, fighting hard to win the pivotal points in this tightly contested clash. Dinara Safina triumphed over Vera Zvonareva, also in straight sets. This was undoubtedly Safina’s best performance all tournament, as her awesome display of consistency and power wiped Zvonareva off the court.
It will be a ripper of a championship match come Saturday night. The anticipation has not been so high in some time. Both Serena and Dinara are ecstatic to be there – Safina in her first final in Melbourne and Serena vying for her fourth Australian Open crown.
The number one ranking is up for grabs by both girls.
Serena will use her experience and heavy hitting from the baseline, and if need be, will have no qualms in approaching the net. She is after all an established doubles player. This is a tough test for the Russian. Dinara is a great shot maker, capable of steering the ball in any direction and will aim to expose the Williams’ fitness and court coverage ability by dragging her wide and going for the angles.
There are bound to be nerves on the Russian’s part, however if she can serve the way she did against countrywoman Zvonareva, she can earn plenty more free points off her own serve. Safina must not be intimated by her counterpart and while the bookies are favoring the younger Williams sister, Safina’s athleticism, composure and aggressiveness off the ball will get her across the line.
Dinara Safina in 3 sets
Aaress Lawless’ Take on the Final
It never ceases to amaze me that Grand Slams always bring out the best in Serena Williams.
She looked shaky during much of the past fortnight, yet on Thursday in the semifinals, her game kicked into high gear as she demolished Elena Dementieva in straight sets. Her serve, which has been a liability this season, returned to its old lethal form as she blasted ten aces and was only broken twice.
A win on Saturday would push Serena into major double digits, something that no other player in recent history has accomplished. I expect this match to be closer than Serena’s last Grand Slam final. Jelena Jankovic didn’t have the experience of dealing with the pressure of a major final, and Dinara Safina shook off her Grand Slam jitters last year in the Roland Garros final against Ana Ivanovic.
Dinara’s strengths are her fighting spirit and shot making prowess, two things in common with her brother Marat. Safina is making a name for herself as a comeback queen as she normally displays her best tennis when faced with a 2-5 deficit. However, to have a chance against Serena, she cannot allow herself to get in that deep of a hole. For Safina to win, she will have to seize the momentum from the start, dictate the points from the baseline, and be patient in long rallies. Serena’s strength lies in going for outright winners, but if she gets trapped into a 12+ shot rally, look for Dinara to win the point.
Safina is quickly developing into one of the best players on the Tour, but the time for her maiden Grand Slam title is not here yet. If Serena brings her “A” game to the court in Melbourne, this will be a lopsided encounter. She is hungry for another major title and it certainly doesn’t hurt Serena’s chances that she has won the Australian Open every odd year since 2003.
Serena Williams in 2 sets
Safina, I believe, will win.
Winning this upcoming Australian Open final may well hold special career significance for Serena. She would join an elite group of 4 other women to win the Aussie Open, it would also mark the first time since 2002 that Serena won back-to-back Grand Slams, having won the 2008 US Open. Even though I don’t believe that Serena will be bothered by the pressure of a significant match I, however, have noticed that on the cusp of certain athletic milestones Serena has a tendency to come out flat.
It’s almost as if instead of getting geared up for the big match the opposite occurs and she becomes complacent. Her comments about the upcoming final communicate as much to me, she says “If I win, that would be great. If I lose, I’ll just leave with the confidence that I can get far in a tournament when I’m not playing my best“ [Australian Open dot com, interviews]
So which Serena will show up Saturday? The Serena that began the 2007 Australian Open final by jumping on Sharapova and dismantling her 6-1 6-2? Or the Serena from the 2004 Wimbledon final that never seemed either fully present or fired up and, subsequently, spent the first set struggling to find her rhythm?
Dinara Safina, on the other hand, is a ball of fire right now. Not only has she come out of 2008 with so much momentum but she is playing with such belief and desire.
6-3 7-5
Safina takes it.
* Correction, I meant to say
“She would join an elite group of women to win the Aussie Open at least 4 times”
Court
Goolagong
Graf
Seles
If Safina does beat Serena, she too will join an exclusive club. Only two people in the world have ever stopped Serena in a Grand Slam final—her sister Venus and Maria Sharapova.
And it still remains so, Safina never even got started!
That was a massacre!
The Safinas of the WTA would be wishing Serena never play like that agains them.
I think I know why you Tennis lords say, the game is so mental.