Why Serena Williams might struggle in the French Open final
— -- PARIS -- In a city blessed with some of the world's greatest art treasures, this was not an entirely aesthetic triumph. They will not hang this one in the Musee d'Orsay amid the breathtaking Monets, Manets and Rousseaus.
But after 98 minutes, three squandered match points, 31 unforced errors -- and a, frankly, fortuitous netcord -- No. 1-ranked Serena Williams finds herself precisely where she is supposed to be: the French Open final.
She overcame Kiki Bertens in a difficult Friday semifinal, 7-6 (7), 6-4, and will face another quick turnaround for Saturday's championship match against No. 4 seed Garbine Muguruza.
The long, lithe Spaniard, an increasingly intriguing foil for Serena, wrecked Samantha Stosur in the other semifinal, 6-2, 6-4. There are more than a dozen years between Muguruza and the 34-year-old Serena. Will that be a factor?
Perhaps, especially considering Serena is nursing an adductor injury.
"Yeah, I have had some issues," Serena admitted in her postmatch news conference. "But, you know, it is what it is."
This one feels like a classic coming-of-age moment for Muguruza. She stunned Serena in a second-round match here two years ago, then advanced to the Wimbledon final a year ago, losing to the world No. 1 by a respectable 6-4, 6-4 count. After reaching the quarterfinals here the past two years, Muguruza is contemplating her very first Grand Slam singles title.
Serena, on the other hand, is a three-time Roland Garros champion and the defending titleholder. If she wins, it will be her 22nd major title, equaling Steffi Graf for the Open era record and leaving her only two behind Margaret Court for the record.
This will be the fifth meeting between Serena and Muguruza -- all of which have come in Grand Slam events. While Serena leads 3-1, she said she learned a lot about her lone loss two years ago.
"I hate to lose, but when I do, you know, I hope it was worth it," Serena said. "That match was definitely one of those that was kind of needed and worth it."
What did she learn, exactly?
"A lot," she said. "A ton. I don't really want to elaborate, but it was a really unbelievable lesson for me. It propelled me to many, many, many wins after that."
For all the fussing about the rain, her path to the title here looks eerily similar to her run at the Italian Open a few weeks ago. Serena won five matches in six days -- all in straight sets -- to win her first championship in nine months.
After three conventional matches here in Paris, rain finally caught up with Serena. Her Monday match against Elina Svitolina wasn't completed until Wednesday. Then, almost entirely devoid of drama to this point, Serena ran into feisty Yulia Putintseva on Thursday in the quarterfinals. It was the first (and only) time Serena has been extended to three sets here this year, but she managed to win six of seven games in the final frame.
And then she disappeared.
It was 2½ hours before she emerged in her postmatch interview, where she answered only seven questions before bolting, leading to speculation that she might be nursing an injury of some kind. Which it turned out, she is.
And now the final will be her fourth straight day on the courts.
Serena was typically sluggish out of the box Friday, double-faulting to hand her first service game to Bertens, who was playing with an injured left calf that had her considering withdrawing before the match.
But Serena tightened up her groundstrokes after a taut opening set and employed a number of drop shots to decent effect. The first Dutch woman in a major semifinal since 1977 (Betty Stove, US Open), Bertens' run was reminiscent of another Dutch player, Martin Verkerk, a random semifinalist here in 2003.
Serena can thank Bertens for removing some challenging impediments from their side of the draw. Bertens beat No. 3 seed Angelique Kerber in the first round, No. 15 seed Madison Keys in the fourth and No. 8 seed Timea Bacsinszky in the quarters.
It has been, by every measure, a squalid fortnight in terms of the weather. Rain compressed the schedule here, and Paris is historically waterlogged, with the greatest rainfall in May since the records began in 1873. French President Francois Hollande has declared a state of emergency and nearly 30,000 homes went without electricity the past few days. The River Seine that runs through the center of the city is cresting at 21 feet, the highest level since 1882.
Even the Musee d'Orsay, an extension of the Musee du Louvre, has not been immune to the crisis. It sits along the edge of the Seine and was forced to close for the rest of the week.
For Serena, however, it's still business as usual.
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