Serena Williams’ dream of an undefeated season ended with a rather lethargic effort.
Williams lost the match and her undefeated season to Petra Kvitova, 6-2, 6-3, in the semi-finals of the Madrid Open this week. Kvitova now faces Svetlana Kuznetsova, who defeated Maria Sharapova, 6-2, 6-4, in the other semifinal, according to the New York Times .
The victory is Kvitova’s first ever victory against Williams — who boasts winning 19 Grand Slams — but put up a rather muddled, lethargic effort against Kvitova.
“I’m just exhausted today,” said Williams, whose service was broken by Kvitova six times during the match. “But it’s really good preparation for Roland Garros.”
The French Open begins Sunday, May 24 and will run until Sunday, June 7. Roland Garros is the home of the French Open.
Williams, the world’s number one women’s tennis player, hadn’t lost a match since October. Williams’ effort on the Madrid Open court, however, was negative and slow. Williams had her first service broken by Kvitova, who put a stranglehold on the match, according to the Guardian .
Kvitova broke serve two more times in the first set, leaving Williams, the Madrid Open 2012 and 2013 champion, reaching for answers in her first clay-court tuneup for the French Open.
USA Today is reporting that Williams’ loss also broke a string of 50 match victories in Premiere Mandatory events (the events that are considered a step below the Grand Slam tournaments), and the fourth-longest victory streak in history.
There has been only one woman’s tennis player to have ended any season undefeated, and that was Steffi Graf, who ended 1988 with a 28-0 Grand Slam match victory streak.
For Williams, however, the Madrid Open was more than a victory streak — it was to get herself ready for the clay courts of Roland Garros, the only Grand Slam played on clay. Many feel that this can serve as a break for Williams so she can rest some before the French Open.
The only question now is whether Williams will play in Rome next week at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia Open or the week after in the Internationaux de Strasbourg in Strasbourg, France. In 2013, Williams played in and won both the d’Italia Open and the French Open. In 2012 and 2014, however, she played in Rome, reaching the semifinals in 2012 and winning in 2014. Then, Williams couldn’t get past the second round in either year at Roland Garros.
At this stage of Williams’ career, it could be most prudent to focus on the French Open exclusively and attempt to win William’s 20th Grand Slam Championship. She won the French Open in 2002 and again in 2013 in what is widely considered her toughest Grand Slam event. Williams is zeroing in on Steffi Graf’s record 22 Grand Slam championships.
[Image courtesy of the Miami Herald/ Daniel Ochoa de Olza]