I just wanna be a KareBear like you--the evolution of Angelique Kerber

Photo by Daniel Ward

I remember, years ago, standing on the sidewalk at the Family Circle Cup and watching Daniela Hantuchova--surrounded by empty courts because everyone else had finished playing--swatting away for hours at a pesky opponent who simply would not go away. The other player was like a wall, but she was more than a wall; she was reading Hantuchova's game and responding quickly. That opponent was Angelique Kerber. I had seen Kerber play before, but this match made it clear just how strong her defensive skills were.

Hantuchova won the match 6-7, 7-5, 6-3. She was exhausted, and also somewhat upset with tournament schedulers, who put her on the next morning to play her quarterfinal against Jelena Jankovic. (That quarterfinal turned out to be, in my opinion, the best match of the tournament, and Hantuchova won it, in spite of her fatigue.) By this time, the battle against Kerber was a forgotten matter, but those of us who watched it were very impressed.

It wasn't until 2011 that the left-handed Kerber gained some fame in the tennis world, for it was then that she surprised almost everyone by reaching the semifinals of the U.S. Open while ranked number 92 in the world. The German took out the likes of Aga Radwanska and Flavia Pennetta to reach the semifinals, in which she lost to eventual champion Sam Stosur.

This "surprise semifinalist" phenomenon is, of course, somewhat of a staple of the WTA. Virtually unknown players reach the quarterfinals or semifinals of a major, and then are rarely heard from again. Not so with Kerber, however. In 2012, she won both Paris (indoor) and Copenhagen. She also reached the semifinals of Wimbledon, beating Ekaterina Makarova, Kim Clijsters and Sabine Lisicki along the way. Kerber finished 2012 in the top 5.

In 2013, Kerber began showing signs of what would become a chronic back injury. Her results were streaky, though she did make it to the round of 16 at both the Australian Open  and the French Open, and the semifinals in Indian Wells. She also won the tournament in Linz.

Kerber's progress was hampered by a variety of issues. Her back went out easily, which was not unexpected, given the extreme physicality with which she approaches her matches. She was criticized for playing too defensively (the same criticism that was frequently given to Caroline Wozniacki), her serve ranged from mediocre to outstanding from event to event, and she engaged in a very high level of negative self-talk during matches.

It was this last trait that looked to be Kerber's undoing. Players do become angry with themselves during matches, but Kerber took this characteristic to a new level, experiencing obvious emotional discomfort for long periods of time. In 2014, Kerber reached four finals on three different surfaces, and she lost all of them. It was, at once, a glimpse of just how good she could be, and just how affected she was by her demons.

Kerber played in one of the great matches of the year in 2014. In the Wimbledon round of 16, she defeated Maria Sharapova in a grueling three-set contest in which Sharapova hit 57 winners. Kerber needed seven match points to win, but win she did, in a brilliant display of toughness against the player who is known for toughness. The German star finished the year ranked number 10 in the world.

Angelique Kerber began the 2015 Australian season rather well, but then lost in the first round at the Australian Open. She then went on an uncharacteristic losing streak and dropped out of the top 10. Things were looking bad for her, and then suddenly, she turned around not only her season, but her entire career.

In Charleston, Kerber had to fight like mad to win matches. She went down a set and a break in her opening match against Evgeniya Rodina, she had to play three sets against Lara Arruabarrena, and won a double tiebreak match against a very creative Irina-Camelia Begu. After beating defending champion and friend/countrywoman Andrea Petkovic, Kerber was left to battle against Madison Keys on a cold windy Sunday on Daniel Island.

Kerber's shoulder was heavily taped during the match, and on two occasions, she would tweak her right thigh. She won the first set easily, lost the second, and went down 1-4 in the third. She then caught up with her opponent and eventually served a love game to win the tournament. It was a dramatic match, and a dramatic moment for Kerber.

It was also the beginning of a new era for the German. She left Charleston and went to Stuttgart, where, in her opening round, she issued Sharapova her first loss ever at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. Kerber would go on to win Stuttgart, her second premier event title of the year. She won another premier title in Birmingham, this time on grass, and a fourth just recently--this one a hard court premier event--in Stanford.

For reasons unknown to me, Li Na's "gift" of Alex Stober to her dear friend Petra Kvitova resulted in a relationship that didn't last, and now Kerber is the recipient of Stober's considerable physio skills, which one hopes will help her resolve her lower back issues. Once somewhat of an emotional mess on court, Kerber is now simply a strong, very fast-moving fighter who can outlast her opponents. Her recent defeat of Aga Radwanska in their amazing Stanford quarterfinal demonstrated the maturity of her game, as well as her estimable athletic prowess.

Angelique Kerber is now 27 years old, and is the very definition of "steady progress." Her fans love her fighting spirit and her smile, and it would be hard not to like her outstanding retrieving ability. But there is more to Kerber than fight and retrieval. She is very fast, she can be powerful, she can be quite creative, and she can be dead-on precise at a moment's notice. Every season, she gets better, and every season, she becomes more interesting to watch.

Kerber is currently ranked number 11 in the world, and number 6 on the Road to Singapore. With her Stanford win, she's off to a great North American hard court season start, and she has already proven herself on all three surfaces this year. That's pretty special, by any standard.

The kids are still alright!

Margarita Gasparyan wins 1st career #WTA title! Tops Tig 63 57 60 at Baku Cup--> http://t.co/8kOyTS6Ehb pic.twitter.com/pBe1vwCXKg

— WTA (@WTA) August 2, 2015

 Over the weekend, we saw something happen that doesn't happen very often. A young player who was suddenly noticed because she fought hard and put in a good performance against an elite player (in this case, Serena Williams) at a major, turned right around--figuratively speaking--and won her first tournament. Margarita Gasparyan not only won Baku, but in doing so, she also

The young Russian is the first player with a one-handed backhand to win a title this year. But there's more: She and runner-up Patricia Maria Tig, both unseeded (Tig was a qualifier) upset the two top seeds in the semifinals. And here's perhaps the best part: Prior to arriving in Baku, Gasparyan had never won a main draw match; she was 0-5.

Oh, and there's even more--Gasparyan and Alexandra Panova won the doubles title.

Who knew that the Baku Cup tournament was going to be so unusual and exciting? Gasparyan, at number 71, has moved into the top 100 for the first time in her career. Tig, who is Romanian, had won only one main draw match before coming to Baku, so she, too, made quite a leap in progress.

.@TelianaPereira captures 2nd title of 2015! Beats Beck 64 46 61 at @BrasilTennisCup--> http://t.co/NEZwNg0nZN #WTA pic.twitter.com/uCw5orpKWq

— WTA (@WTA) August 1, 2015

Meanwhile, in Brazil, Teliana Pereira won her second tournament of the season. The 2015 Bogota champion won her home country's tournament, the Brasil Tennis Cup, in Florianopolis. Pereira defeated Annika Beck 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 in the final. Her victory marks the third time in the Open Era that a Brazilian woman has won a WTA tournament, and the second time a Brazilian player has won a WTA tournament in Brazil. The other champions were Neige Dias and the great Maria Bueno. Pereira has now moved into the top 50.

Beck and her partner, Laura Siegemund, won the doubles title.

The kids are alright--for now

Even in the WTA, which has become a proud standard bearer for the strength of veteran athletes, the power eventually shifts. Older players retire or experience the natural decline of their skills. Historically, super-stars have arrived in a flash--or at least it seemed like a flash--and begun their domination. But today, the "rising star" category isn't that easy to sort out.

Take, for example, Simona Halep. Some of us have watched her for several years and have known of her immense potential. But to the public, and--unfortunately--to the sports media, she was a virtual unknown. When she broke rank a couple of years ago, it was considered "surprising" news. But anyone who had watched Halep over the years wasn't surprised. Angelique Kerber made a similar "surprise" appearance among tennis elite, as did Dinara Safina before her. Timea Bacsinszky, whose comeback was extraordinary, also falls into this category. These players were always under the radar, and only serious fans understood that the breakthrough could happen at any moment.

Some very young players, like Chris Evert, Maria Sharapova and Venus and Serena Williams, step into success at an early age and don't have to look back. But others, especially in the current generation, go forward and back with such rapidity that it's hard to keep up.

Sloane Stephens is a good example. Much was made of Stepehens' obvious skills during her 2013 breakthrough, despite the fact that she was peaking at major events only. Stephens, who is now ranked number 34 in the world, has yet to win a WTA title, or to even reach a final. She's young, and could just as likely have a second "breakthrough." Or not. It wasn't that many years ago when the names "Tamira Paszek" and "Michelle Larcher De Brito" were uttered as Next Big Thing phenomena.

Karolina Pliskova has a huge serve and a very good all-around game, and appears to be comfortable on different surfaces. She is, however, the anti-Sloane, in that she does not do well at the majors, despite doing quite well at other events. The talented young Czech player has played in ten WTA singles finals and has won four of them. However, she has yet to advance beyond the second round of a major, having done so only twice. On those two occasions, she was defeated in the third round.

Again, this doesn't necessarily "mean" anything. Whatever obstacles are in her way can be removed through appropriate coaching (physical and otherwise) or perhaps just maturity.

Belinda Bencic is only 18 and has already won Eastbourne; she has also played in two other finals, and she reached the third round of the 2015 French Open. It's too early to really know just what Bencic can do, though her tennis future appears very bright.

There are several young players who show signs of enjoying bright futures: Madison Keys, Elina Svitolina, Camila Giorgi, Kiki Mladenovic, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Heather Watson, Lesia Tsurenko, Elina Svitolina, Katerina Siniakova--this list could go on to include others. What's interesting is that we don't know who (if any) will rise to the very top, who will have an outstanding career, or who may fade away.

In the "rising star" category (and I don't count Halep as such--she's a star who is trying to glow brighter, and I actually think of her as a kind of veteran player), there are two names that deserve special attention. One is Garbine Muguruza, who just seems to have "I'm it!" written all over her. From her gutsy play to her comfortable-in-her-own-skin persona, the Spaniard--at this time--comes the closest to looking like a major star in the making. She was out for a long time because of injury, and when she returned, she had trouble closing matches. But these problems appear to be behind her, and it's hard not to expect some big things from her in the near future.

Finally, there is the matter of Genie Bouchard. I can't recall any player experiencing such a dramatic rise, to be immediately followed by such a dramatic fall. Bouchard is in something that is beyond "slump," and her current abdominal injury does little to give hope to fans that she will somehow sort out her career in the next few months.

The Canadian's woes began in 2014 after she was blown off the court by Petra Kvitova (someone who knows a thing or two about sudden soars followed by dramatic drops) during the 2014 Wimbledon final. Coincidence? No one knows except Bouchard, and she may not even know. 2014 was a very dramatic year for her; she reached the semifinals of both the Australian Open and the French Open, and the final of Wimbledon. She also reached the round of 16 of the U.S. Open, which isn't exactly shabby, but her decline had begun.

Bouchard has been kind of a walking injury for the past several months, and when a player gets injured frequently, I tend to look at the psychological aspect as well as the physical. All players are going to sustain injuries in this very demanding sport, but sustaining a lot of injuries (or experiencing a lot of illness) can be a sign of an individual whose overall balance may need to be restored (that goes for the rest of us, too).

There has been a media frenzy over Bouchard, who is a "marketable" blonde with her own army of supporters that travels around the world to cheer and sing for her. She is an official Big Deal. Once you are a Big Deal, you face unbelievable pressure, from within and without, to perform at a very high level. Bouchard is also quirky, though--as a Big Deal Blonde--she isn't presented that way. (Maria Sharapova is quirky, too, but has always appeared to have the self-containment to pull it off and still be a BDB.) The handshake quirk, the kimono, and the over-"candid" press conferences point to a complicated person.

This isn't a criticism, by the way. I like quirky, and I want every player to feel free to be exactly who she is. The wonderful blend of personalities is what makes the WTA irresistible. But even a mature 21-year-old can freeze when caught in a web of undeniable talent, chronic injury and international hype and expectations.

Genie Bouchard is currently ranked number 26 in the world. Her 2015 season has been miserable so far. She lost in the first round at both the French Open and Wimbledon, and has suffered repeated first and second round losses. She has continued to suffer with an abdominal injury. Bouchard lost both of her Fed Cup matches to Romania, and also received something of a personal beat-down from Alex Dulghuru, who mocked Bouchard following their match.

In short, Genie Bouchard's brief career already qualifies as a mystery, and who doesn't enjoy a good mystery?

It may take Bouchard and her team a while to figure out what went wrong and why, and then to fix it. Maybe a long while. Or she could storm back in 2016 and push even Muguruza into the background. In the meantime, the veterans are doing just fine, thank you. Kvitova remains the only player born in the 90s who has won a major (she has won two, and "should" have already won more, but that's another story, and one that has been covered here with frustrating frequency).

Unsolved mysteries of the WTA

Do you ever wonder why certain players do the things they do, or don't do the things they "should" do? I do--quite often. These questions become unsolvable puzzles because, obviously, we as fans cannot know all of the variables involved. And I suspect that--even if we did--many of these puzzles would still mystify us.* 

Ekaterina Makarova: Why can't she get fired up for tournaments that aren't majors? With the exception of the French Open, the tricky lefty-serving Russian is practically a fixture in the second week of a major, but close to nonexistent at other times.

Petra Kvitova: Has she really done the healthcare consulting that she needs to do? Asthma and respiratory weakness are deadly for athletes, and I can't help but believe that there are treatments the Czech star hasn't tried. Her countrywoman, Lucie Hradecka, had some of the same problems, and she resolved them with dietary intervention. There are a lot of ways to approach chronic illness, and it always troubles me how few of them people attempt.

As for Kvitova's other issue--going to pieces in the middle of matches--she was working with a "mental coach," but I don't know if she is still doing that, nor do I know what level of competence the practitioner has. I would like to know what type of psychological interventions are being used with players.

Maria Sharapova: Can't she come up with something new when she plays Serena? At this point, Serena can practically phone it in. Sharapova is a smart player--surely there's another way to try to solve the Serena problem.

Tsvetana Pironkova: Known on this blog as the Bulgarian Woman of Mystery, Pironkova has a great backhand, and--when it's working--a very tricky serve. Her forehand slice, though laughed at, can be effective, but the rest of her forehand is another story. Here is another very good player who needs some special help, but just doesn't seem to get it. 

Simona Halep: Halep says that Ilie Nastase says she plays for Porsche, but, she protests, she plays for Romania. Maybe try playing for herself? Though Halep keeps as low a profile as possible and speaks with quiet conviction, there seems to be a lot of drama surrounding her all the time. There's the patriotism plot, the sudden stardom plot, the coach-changing plot. It can't be easy for Halep to have emerged (finally) as an elite tennis player. I think she is deeply talented and hope that she can narrow her focus enough to win big titles.

Sabine Lisicki: She has a huge serve, she has a lovely drop shot, she can construct points. But the German player cannot connect emotional balance with the demands of competition. That's something that can be fixed, but so far, it hasn't been.

Eugenie Bouchard: Do I even go here? There's no WTA award for Mysterious Phenomenon of the Year, but if there were, Bouchard would win it.

*This post originally included Sara Errani's serve, but I have been informed that her shoulder issue is apparently much worse than I was aware of, so I've removed that part of the post. However--given the number of players who have had to modify their serves because of shoulder and back issues, I still wonder whether Errani is serving optimally within the confines of her limitations.

My Wimbledon top 10

SERENA. HAS. ARRIVED. pic.twitter.com/7qYQb6BcDM

— Lindsay Gibbs (@linzsports) July 12, 2015

My top 10 Wimbledon occurrences, in ascending order:

10. Half a dozen and counting: Yui Kamiji and Jordanne Whiley, who--a couple of years ago--couldn't even speak to one another because of a language barrier--have nevertheless managed to win six major championships. The sixth one came on the last day of the tournament, when the top seeds defeated 2nd seeds Jiske Griffioen and Aniek Van Koot 6-2, 5-7, 6-3.

9. Bittersweet CoCo: CoCo Vandeweghe has always appeared to have some threatening potential, and for the first time, we were able to see what it looks like unleased. Vandeweghe had a very tough draw. She beat Anna Schmiedlova, 11th seed Karolina Pliskova, 22nd seed Sam Stosur, and 6th seed (and 2014 semifinalist) Lucie Safarova. Her run ended when she faced Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals, but what a run it was. After the match, she complained about Maria, and though (thankfully) the question was never asked, in my head, I heard Isn't she back in California?

8. Make that toast, hold the Halepeno: Only weeks after Simona Halep was upset in the second round of the French Open, she was upset in the first round of Wimbledon. Jana Cepelova, playing the kind of tennis she can deliver when she's healthy, lost her first set against 3rd seed Halep, but took the other two, creating the first huge upset of the tournament.

7. Leave it to JJ: Serving out of her mind and leaping on the opportunity to show Petra Kvitova's evil twin the door, Jelena Jankovic upset the defending champion in the third round. For a set and a half, Kvitova looked like the Wimbledon champion, but then "that thing" happened, and she still might have overcome her problem, only Jankovic was just too good.

6. So near, so far: Britain's number 1 player, Heather Watson, rocked the house during her third round match against top seed and eventual champion Serena Williams. Watson, who has improved a lot in every aspect of her game, played the match of her life against Williams. With the crowd in an absolute frenzy, the world number 59 served for the match and came within two points of winning it. But she learned, as have so many, that when you play Serena, objects in the mirror are not as close as they appear. Williams won, 6-2, 4-6 7-5.

5. Did I just see that?!: Not since Aga Radwanska made us gasp throughout her final set against Vika Azarenka in the 2014 Australian Open quarterfinals has there been been a set played like the one played by Angelique Kerber and Garbine Muguruza in the third round of Wimbledon. Only in this case, it was both players bringing the magic. The high degree of athleticism, tactical intelligence and shot-making in the opening set of the match was simply dazzling. Muguruza won the set in a tiebreak (14-12) and went on to win the match in three sets.

4. Timeless: Seventeen years after winning her last Wimbledon title, Martina Hingis showed up this year and won two titles. She and Leander Paes won the mixed doubles championship, and she and Sania Mirza won the women's doubles title. The women's final featured the top seeds against the 2nd seeds, Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, and it was thrilling from the first shot. Hingis and Mirza were down 2-5 in the third set, but staged a dramatic comeback to win their first major as a team (and Mirza's first major women's doubles title). It was one of the best matches of the tournament.

3. The sparkle of glitter, the magic of Ninja: Little was said about the round of 16 match played between Jelena Jankovic and Aga Radwanska. All eyes were on the Williams sisters, and the upset of Safarova and the progress of Madison Keys preoccupied commentators. But Jankovic and Radwanska played one of the most beautiful matches I've seen in a long time. Their matches are always entertaining and well-played, but this one was special. Jankovic's movement looked like it used to, and her serve was again on fire. As for Radwanska, she brought the kind of athleticism and trickery for which she has become famous. Both players sometimes seem like they might be made of rubber, so it's always a joy to watch them try to out-maneuver each other. Radwanska won, 7-5, 6-4, and it was sad that something so lovely had to come to an end. The very best part? Aga and JJ are back!

2. "...I'm not afraid": The day before the final, Garbine Muguruza blew a breath of fresh air over the lawns by announcing that she had no fear of playing Serena Williams. It would turn out that she did develop some fear, then overcame it, but not enough to stop Williams. Nevertheless, this was a noteworthy run, if not a surprise. The young Spanish star-in-the-making had to do some hard work to get to the final. She took out (in addition to the sometimes-deadly Mirjana Lucic-Baroni) four seeds: Angelique Kerber (10), Caroline Wozniacki (5), Timea Bacsinszky (15), and Aga Radwanska (13). That is terribly impressive.

Muguruza lost in straight sets in the final, but she broke Williams both times she served for the match, giving the crowd some real excitement and showing that--when the pressure was on--she really wasn't afraid.

1. Serena Slam? Yes, ma'am!: She did it. The world number 1 has earned her second "Serena Slam." The world number 1 now holds all four major major championships, and with a win at the 2015 U.S. Open, she'll also have the Grand Slam, something she has yet to achieve.

Serena Williams' journey through the Wimbledon draw was not an easy one. She was taken to the edge by Watson, and had to play her sister, Venus, as well as her most challenging opponent, Victoria Azarenka. Then Williams had to contend with a stubborn Muguruza in the final. But she got the job done; getting the job done is her strongest characteristic. At age 33, Serena is the oldest woman to win a major in the Open Era. This is her sixth Wimbledon title and her 21st singles major, and she's playing better than ever.

Perhaps youth will be served, but not at Wimbledon

Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis, the 2015 #Wimbledon Ladies' Doubles champions pic.twitter.com/hLZK2UZhgy

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 11, 2015

Earlier today, 33-year-old Serena Williams lifted the Wimbledon singles trophy. Never one to be outdone, later in the day, 34-year-old Martina Hingis and partner Sania Mirza lifted the doubles trophy. The number 1 team in the world beat the number 2 team, Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina 5-7, 7-6, 7-5.

It was a superb match, and the trophy was about to go into the hands of the Russians, who were up 5-2 in the final set. But Hingis and Mirza staged a huge comeback, and made some history in the process. For Hingis, it was her first Wimbledon victory in 17 years. (She won the singles title in 1997 and the doubles title, with Jana Novotna, in 1998.) Mirza, in winning her first major women's doubles title, became the first Indian woman to win a major title of any kind.

Makarova and Vesnina won the 2013 French Open and the 2014 U.S. Open. Vesnina and Mirza are former doubles partners. Together, they won both Indian Wells and Charleston in 2011.

Serena Williams redefines the term, "Plan B"

Hilarity. #Serena #Wimbledon #SerenaSlam pic.twitter.com/imgmTzPQU5

— Jonathan Scott (@jonscott9) July 11, 2015

Today's Wimbledon final, featuring world number 1 Serena Williams and 20th Wimbldon seed Garbine Muguruza, turned out to be a microcosm of Williams' entire 2015 Wimbledon experience, which makes Williams' victory all the more amazing.

It was an unusually difficult tournament for the top seed. She struggled against the unknown Margarita Gasparyan in the first round. In the third round, Heather Watson, supported by an almost out-of-control British crowd, served for the match, coming dangerously close to taking Williams out of the tournament. Williams then had to play her sister, but there was no "rest" for her because next, she had to play her current most challenging opponent, Vika Azarenka.

The world number 1 had a routine win over Maria Sharapova in the semifinals, but was visibly nervous at the beginning of the final, double-faulting three times in the first game. Broken, she saw the break consolidated when Muguruza held. At 3-2, Muguruza saved two break points to go up 4-3, but was then broken the next time she served.

Serving behind for the first time, at 4-5, Muguruza hit an ace at 30-all, which looked like a very good sign for her, but it wasn't. Williams got a break point on her, and then--for the first time--the Spaniard double-faulted. The "oh my God I'm playing Serena in the Wimbledon final" moment had finally come, and with it came an entirely different Muguruza--a "nervious" (as she is prone to say) one.

Williams held and took the first set at 6-4. In the second set, she broke Muguruza at 1-2, and then the whole thing turned into the Serena Show--until it didn't.

But I digress. After that break, before you could say "Garbine Muguruza is finished," Williams went up 5-1 and served for the championship. Only Muguruza, exhibiting what I'll call a champion's mind in the making, would have none of it; she broke Williams at love, then efficiently held for 3-5.

So Williams served for the match a second time, and suddenly found herself down 0-40, when Muguruza hit a sharp, angled forehand on Williams' second serve. Williams then saved the three break points, getting the third save with an ace down the T. She followed that one with another ace, which gave her match point. Only Muguruza hit another stinging crosscourt forehand. The Spaniard next earned a break point, but Williams returned the game to deuce.

Surely Muguruza's powers had run their course. But they hadn't--not yet. What followed was a frenzied rally won by the 20th seed, who took her break point and went with it, bringing the set to 4-5.

Armed with comeback momentum rarely seen in a major final, and particularly against Serena Williams, Muguruza was now in a position to even the match and go for another break. But then something happened, something that seemed like a magic trick at the time. Williams broke Muguruza at love--just like that--and it was over. It happened so fast that even chair umpire Alison Hughes didn't appear to be able to keep up. "Game, set, match," she said, then hesitated, and finally, "Miss Williams."

Later, in her on-court interview, Williams would say "I didn't even know it was over...." It was, in the end, a very exciting contest, thanks to Muguruza's will to survive. And if Williams showed today that she will find a way, no matter how unexpected that way may be, Muguruza showed that she, too, is  made of "find a way" stuff. It didn't work for her this time, but she seems like a player who can only get better.

👏👏 for @GarbiMuguruza on an amazing #Wimbledon! Future is bright for this #WTA Rising Star--> http://t.co/44yulPWpI7 pic.twitter.com/cUAgwgUHFK

— WTA (@WTA) July 11, 2015

This is Williams' sixth Wimbledon title. She is the oldest woman to win a major in the Open Era, and she has now won the "Serena Slam" twice. The new title is also her 21st major singles championship. Much is being made of her needing to win more to "catch up" with Steffi Graf, but you won't get any of that here because--if you know anything about tennis history--you know that such comparisons are totally irrational.

Now all Williams has to do is win the U.S. Open and she will win the Grand Slam, something she has never done. (You also won't get the ridiculously incorrect "Calendar Slam" from me.) Will there be pressure? For sure. Today, we got a really good look at how Williams handles pressure, which leads me to believe that her chances of winning the Grand Slam are very, very good indeed.

The Season of Serena continues!