September 8, 2013, Serena Williams Beats Azarenka in Three Sets for U.S. Open Title By BEN ROTHENBERG The defending champion and top seed Serena Williams took a somewhat scenic route through the final but ultimately arrived at her fifth United States Open title, defeating No. 2 Victoria Azarenka, 7-5, 6-7(6), 6-1. It was Williams’s fifth career United States Open title and 17th Grand Slam title overall. Williams served twice for the championship in the second set, but Azarenka broke her both times and ultimately won a tiebreak to force a decisive final set. But Williams dominated that third set as Azarenka struggled with unforced errors, ultimately claiming the title on her second championship point when an Azarenka backhand return sailed long. 7:58 P.M. Trophy Ceremony Azarenka had composed herself by the time the trophy ceremony began, and she smiled broadly at the warm ovation she received from the crowd. Because she had won the lead-up U.S. Open Series as well, Williams earned an additional $1 million in prize money, bringing her total earnings to $3.6 million. Azarenka earned an additional $250,000 for finishing second in both the lead-up and the tournament. After the two posed for photos together, they shared a hug and Azarenka exited the court. Williams posed for several more herself, then headed off the court as well, signing autographs as she exited. . 7:49 P.M. Williams Wins Title The third time trying to close out the title proved the charm for Serena Williams, closing out the third set 6-1. Williams lost her first match point on a forehand error into the net but won it on her second opportunity when an Azarenka backhand return landed just long. After the ball landed out, Williams leaped for joy several times, and then shook hands with Azarenka. As Williams celebrated with screams of “Come on!” and “Yes!” Azarenka sat in her chair and began to cry. . 7:34 P.M. Williams Takes Commanding Lead Helped by an uncharacteristic number of unforced errors by Azarenka — including in the last 3 straight points of the previous game — Williams has taken a commanding 5-1 lead in the third set. She will now attempt to serve for the United States Open championship for a third time, about 40 minutes after her previous attempt. . 7:28 P.M. Williams Pulls Ahead in Third Set Williams drew first blood in the third set, earning break point on Azarenka’s serve at 1-2. Azarenka saved the first break point with a backhand volley winner as both players were at net, but she double faulted on the second to put Williams ahead, 3-1. Williams then followed by holding at love, finishing with a second serve ace to go up 4-1. That 4-1 lead is the same margin by which Williams led in the second set, however, and all parties involved will remember how that one ended. . 7:18 P.M. On Serve in Third Set Williams appeared to still be affected by the way she lost the second set as the third began, double faulting on the opening point and going down, 0-30. But she steeled herself to hold serve to open the set. Azarenka then held her own serve, and Williams followed suit with an 11-shot rally to begin the final set steadily on serve at 2-1. This is only the second time since 1996 that there has been a three-set women’s final at this tournament; the only other time was last year when these two met in a Grand Slam final for the first time. . 7:01 P.M. Azarenka Comes Back to Take Second Set in Tiebreak After Williams twice served for the championship, Azarenka claimed the second set in a tiebreak, 7-6(6). Williams took an early 3-1 lead in the decider, but Azarenka did not let her get any further. Williams exasperatedly shouted “the wind!” as the score was leveled at 4-4, and Azarenka would win the next two points as well to earn her first 2 set points. Williams saved Azarenka’s first set point with a service winner out wide, and on the second she survived a 12-shot rally when Azarenka’s forehand eventually hit the net. But at 6-6, Williams missed a backhand return that gave Azarenka a third set point, and she hit a backhand long to give Azarenka the tiebreak 8-6 and new life in a third set. . 6:52 P.M. Williams Broken Again at Finish Line; Tiebreak Coming Williams opened her second attempt to serve out the victory with an ace out wide, spinning past Azarenka’s forehand. Azarenka won the next 2 points, but Williams pulled within 2 points of victory with a strong serve out wide that Azarenka could not return. But from there Williams appeared uncharacteristically frozen by the occasion, first hitting a leaden-footed backhand error into the net and then a double fault to give Azarenka the break. A tiebreak will now decide the second set. . 6:42 P.M. Azarenka Breaks to Stay Alive, but Williams Breaks Back Williams was just 3 points from the championship at 5-4, 15-0, but showed some nerves with a double fault that leveled the game at 15-all. Azarenka then won the next 2 points and found herself with an opportunity to even the set. Williams saved the first with a strong body serve and eventual forehand winner, but an excellent return by Azarenka on the second eventually pressured Williams into missing a backhand just long. Having staved off elimination, Azarenka served to pull ahead at 5-5 in the second set. But Williams rebounded from the disappointment of failing to serve out the match, breaking Azarenka back in the very next game to go up, 6-5, earning a second chance to claim the title on her own serve. . 6:34 P.M. Williams to Serve for Championship Azarenka held to stay in the match with considerable ease, dropping just 1 point as she put the pressure back on Williams by holding to narrow the top seed’s lead to 5-4 in the second set. Williams will now serve for her fifth United States Open title and 17th Grand Slam title overall. . 6:31 P.M. Williams One Game From Title Responding emphatically to having lost the previous two games, Williams held at love to increase her lead in the second set to 5-3, putting herself just one game from the championship. The game was highlighted by an ace for the third point that Williams hit at 119 miles per hour, drawing oohs and aahs from the crowd. Azarenka will now need to hold and then break to remain in the match. 6:25 P.M. Azarenka Narrows Williams’s Lead Azarenka has cancelled out Williams’s insurance break, breaking the American’s serve to pull within 2-4 in the second set. Williams appeared to have saved the first break point with a service winner but was called for a foot fault for the second time in the match. Williams, who had an infamous outburst at a lineswoman during the semifinals of the 2009 Open for making the same call, calmly asked the linesman which foot she had stepped on the line with, and nodded when he told her. Azarenka then held serve by hitting a forehand winner to end the longest point of the match thus far (19 shots), narrowing Williams’s lead in the second set to 4-3. . 6:17 P.M. Azarenka Misfires to Increase Williams’ Lead Azarenka began the fifth game of the set well, smacking a forehand winner to take a 30-0 lead. But she crumbled from there, double-faulting on 3 of the next 4 points to hand Williams a break and a 4-1 lead in the second set. Williams, who now has a commanding set-and-a-double-break lead, is just two games from her fifth United States Open title. . 6:11 P.M. Williams Saves Break Points Screaming “Fight!” in self-exhortation, Azarenka dug into Williams’s service game, earning her first two break point opportunities since the second game of the match. But Williams saved the first with an ace, and benefited from an unforced error off of Azarenka’s backhand on the second to hold for a 3-1 lead. Time is running out for Azarenka to extend this final to a third set the way she was able to last year. . 6:06 P.M. Azarenka Stops Williams’s Streak After five straight games went to the defending champion, Azarenka held for 1-2 in the second set to regain some semblance of a foothold in a match that was fast slipping away from her. Azarenka still appears less troubled of the two by the wind, and some of her slower shots up the middle of the court have twisted in the wind in ways that are befuddling Williams. In a nod to the conditions, the stadium deejay played “Windy” by The Association during the most recent changeover. . 6:01 P.M. Williams Starts Strong in Second Set Williams carried her momentum into the second set, winning her fourth consecutive game to take a 1-0 lead, breaking the Azarenka serve for a third time. Williams then fired two more aces (114 m.p.h. and 117 m.p.h.) in her opening service game of the set and held at love, extending her streak of consecutive games won to five and her overall lead to 7-5, 2-0. . 5:52 P.M. Williams Wins First Set, 7-5 After swirling winds and momentum swings aplenty, Serena Williams held at love to take the opening set, 7-5, over Victoria Azarenka. Williams won the set in 58 minutes. Williams held at love, showing a new-found steadiness in the blustery conditions. Between sets, Williams chatted with chair umpire Alison Lang, who appeared to be warning Williams not to take too much time between points, despite the apparent trouble she is having with the wind. . 5:48 P.M. Williams Breaks for 6-5 After surviving a marathon service game that lasted over nine minutes to stay in the set, Williams surged ahead by attacking Azarenka’s serve with renewed purpose, teeing off on her serve to break for the second time in the match. Williams will now serve to claim the first set. . 5:41 P.M. Battling Wind and Hemline, Williams Levels First Set Williams needed 4 game points but finally held to level the first set at 5-5. Williams has been bothered throughout the match by her loose, tablecloth-esque skirt, which has blown up above her waist several times either between points or during them. But she managed to focus despite the distractions (and an always unsettling foot-fault call) to keep Azarenka from taking the first set, finishing the hold with her second ace of the match. . 5:30 P.M. Williams Aces, But Azarenka Lobs Back Williams finally earned her first ace of the match on the second point of her fourth service game, a milestone that seemed to kick her serve into gear. She hit a service winner on the next point and then quickly won the next 2 points as well off of first serves for her most convincing hold of the match, leveling the set at 4-4. When Williams won the opening point of the next game, it might have seemed that she had momentum, but on the next point Azarenka produced a stunning lob that landed on the baseline, and she followed up the shot with a clean forehand winner to go up, 5-4. Williams will now serve to remain in the first set. . 5:25 P.M. Williams Steadying, But Azarenka Staying Ahead Though still not able to serve with anywhere near her normal ferocity, Williams appeared to have deciphered the wind somewhat, and held with relative ease to level the first set at 3-3. But Azarenka still appeared the more comfortable of the two and held for 4-3 with an impressive stab volley lob off of a Williams passing shot. Williams has been unable to exploit Azarenka’s second serve at all, winning just 20 percent of points off of it. 5:16 P.M. Azarenka Maintains Lead The two have exchanged holds to keep the first set on serve at 3-2 with Azarenka in the lead, but Azarenka appears the far more comfortable of the two in these wind-swept conditions. Williams has missed several balls wildly, not appearing to make the quick footwork adjustments necessary for the change in flight path that Azarenka’s shots are taking. Both players have hit three winners, but Williams has made eight unforced errors already, compared to just three for Azarenka. . 5:03 P.M. Azarenka Breaks Back, Takes Lead Azarenka leveled the first set at 1-1 with some significant assistance from the strong winds gusting across the court of Arthur Ashe Stadium. Williams’s free-flowing hair and loose skirt blew in every direction as she prepared to serve down break point. After she uncharacteristically caught an errant ball toss, Azarenka capitalized on a 84 m.p.h. second serve to break. Azarenka then earned the first hold of the match as Williams still appeared flustered by the wind, taking an early 2-1 advantage. . 4:56 P.M. Williams Breaks to Open Final The final opened with a balk of sorts, as Azarenka was forced to halt her service motion when a fan screamed as she was about to hit the ball. Williams won the opening 3 points of the match, forcing errors from Azarenka, earning an early bundle of break points. Azarenka saved the first with an ace, but Williams attacked an 80 m.p.h. second serve on the second and quickly put away a backhand winner to take an early 1-0 lead. . 4:46 P.M. Players on Court The players are on court, Azarenka donning a white hoodie, and Williams covering her red-and-pink dress with a grey blazer. The coin toss, conducted by Seles, was won by Azarenka, who elected to serve. Azarenka has struggled to hold serve throughout the tournament but might still consider it a preferable option to trying to break Williams’s fearsome service. The chair umpire will be the veteran official Alison Hughes of Great Britain. . 4:24 P.M. Seles Honored The women’s singles final was preceded by a ceremony inducting Monica Seles into the tournament’s “Court of Champions.” Seles was the champion in 1991 and 1992, and a finalist in 1995 and 1996. A plaque in her honor will hang on the wall of honorees near the south gate of the tournament grounds.
Posted on: Mon, 09 Sep 2013 03:08:12 +0000