Why This French Open May Be Serena Williams' Finest Major
— -- PARIS -- Serena Williams has won 19 Grand Slam singles titles in her career, the second-most of anyone in the Open era. She will fight to win another here Saturday. If she does, it will not be just her 20th, but one of her most remarkable as well.
Consider what she has done this fortnight. She has lost the first set of a match four times this French Open and come back to win each time. The first three times it was mostly about rallying from a poor start. Thursday's semifinal victory over Timea Bacsinszky wasn't just about Serena rallying from a poor start, though. This was about having the strength to overcome a poor start and illness.
And also turning what was shaping up to be one of the ugliest losses of her career into one of her most stunning wins. Down a set and a break in the second set, she rallied to win the final 10 games to beat Bacsinszky 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 and advance to the final, where she will face Lucie Safarova.
Asked whether she was affected by playing such a tough opponent, as well as by Williams' struggles with illness, Bacsinszky replied: "I think you have to try to forget all of that no matter who you're playing against. At the end, they have two hands, they have two legs, they have a brain.''
And in Williams' case, a pretty strong heart.
Williams said she came down with the flu several days ago, but this time it affected her more than before. There was a report that Williams vomited before the match, with the weather at about 80 degrees. During the match, she placed ice towels on her head, against her face and around her neck during changeovers. According to BBC coverage, once, while wrapping herself in towels, she asked the chair umpire: "That's not the set, is it?''
When on the court, she moved slowly, as if she were in her 70s rather than her 30s. Sometimes she did not move at all. Bacsinszky placed some excellent drop shots and Williams didn't even attempt to chase them. Once, when Bacsinszky readied to serve, Williams simply stood behind the baseline looking as if she were in another world rather than preparing for a return at a Grand Slam. And then she merely glanced as the ace shot past her.
At one point, Williams lost control of the ball while bouncing it before a serve, fumbled for it, and then let it roll away. It wasn't nearly as drastic as her struggles during her meltdown in the Wimbledon doubles last year, but it didn't look good. Later, when Bacsinszky was challenging a call in the second set, Williams bent over her racket as if exhausted or dizzy or both.
Williams couldn't even complete her final sentence during the traditional postmatch interview on the court, coughing at the end of it and then waving off the announcer. She did find time to say: "I don't think I've ever been this sick. I didn't expect to win that. I can't believe I won.''
Williams did not speak to reporters at the main news conference, either, explaining in a statement that she has been "unwell for a few days'' and needed to see the tournament doctor.
Perhaps most telling of all during the match, she did not let loose with a single cry of "C'mon!" -- or at least not one that was audible in the stands.
And yet ... she won. Again. After losing the first set 6-4 and trailing 3-2 in the second, Williams raised her game. Not only was it the fourth time she has dropped the first set this tournament and won, it was the 33rd time she has done so in Grand Slams, by far the most of any active player.
"Many things were posing difficulties to her,'' Bacsinszky said. "Like she had to work on what I was doing, and then she managed to find a solution, which means that she has a lot of merit for that.
"Well, no wonder that she's won 19 Grand Slam titles. No wonder she's had so many victories.''
While Williams' game improved, Bacsinszky's dropped. With a chance to even the third set at 1-1, the No. 24 seed hit two should-be winners right back into the net. The second blunder gave Williams the game, and Bacsinszky was so frustrated that she flipped over the racket and slammed the ball away with the handle. The match was pretty much over after that.
Williams' serves also strengthened, as did her returns. Though still moving slower than her usual pace, she showed her power. And her fire. She won 5 of 8 break points on Bacsinszky's serve and held off 8 of 10 on her own.
Asked by a French reporter whether she thought Williams was really that sick or also being somewhat theatrical to mess with her head, Bacsinszky said she didn't think Williams was putting on an act. And that the officials obviously didn't think so, either, otherwise they would have said something about the time she was taking between points.
"Whether this be theatrical or not, it's part of the game,'' she said. "The rules are clear. The one who wins is the one who wins the very last point.''
Safarova, Williams' opponent in the final, has played all but one of the past 10 days and plays in the doubles semifinals Friday. Williams, meanwhile, will get -- and desperately needs -- a day off. Will she be feeling better? Playing better? Will she lose the first set again? What could she possibly do next to make this remarkable Slam even more amazing?