Serena Williams has overcome so many hopeless-looking situations in her career that, as the pair prepared to square off in the Australian Open final, Maria Sharapova will not have been fooled when the American had to skip an early practice session yesterday because of apparent sickness.
World No.1 Williams has been struggling to get over a virus that has affected many players at Melbourne Park, but such are her legendary powers of recovery that Sharapova knows better than to expect anything other than a rough ride in today's final.
It is five months short of 11 years since Sharapova, the world No.2, last got the better of Williams, who practised late yesterday, albeit for less time than originally planned. It is an incredible record when you consider that both have been at or close to the top for much of the intervening decade.
The match-up between the two just suits Williams down to the ground and even at 33, she will go into the match as a heavy favourite, for the most part because of the record between the two.
Extra motivation for Williams is that she will pass Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova in the all-time list of grand slam champions with 19 if she can take the title. Navratilova believes the match-up between the two women, with Williams all over the Sharapova serve and the better athlete, explains its one-sidedness.
"It speaks for itself," she said. "Serena's just the better player, I don't think there's any doubt about that. Maria doesn't really have the quickness to bother Serena. She can match up with her pretty well when the ball is in play, but it's about getting into the points.
"Serena has the bigger serve. It's a bad match-up for Maria because where she gets in trouble with her second serve and Serena attacks it really well. And Maria's return of serve is great against most players but Serena can overpower her with pace. Still, she shouldn't have lost that many matches in a row. She's a better player than that."
Nick Bollettieri, who helped bring through Sharapova and who has also worked with Williams, agreed. "This all comes down to the Sharapova serve," he said. "Not Serena's, which is the best in the game, but Sharapova's. If she can serve well enough, so she starts neutral in the point, she has a chance. But it's tough."
Though Sharapova is a champion in her own right, with five grand slam titles to her name, Navratilova believes it would take something dramatic to make it six.
"I know Maria believes that she can beat Serena but Serena just really digs in," she said. "You can just see it. She would hate nothing more than to lose to Maria."
Britain were hoping to have another grand slam champion overnight as 15-year-old Katie Swan was due in action in the girls' final at Melbourne Park.
Based in Wichita, Kansas, Swan saved three match points to book her place in the final against Tereza Mihalikova of Slovakia, bidding to join Laura Robson and Heather Watson as recent British junior grand slam champions.
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