She mastered nearly in all shots of the game, from baseline forehands to overhead smashes. She can hit powerful forehands down the line or can give a very obscure angle and make the ball follow very different angles. Her backhand is maybe not as good but still very very good and she can vary her backhand too. She has a powerful net game, which definitely helps her to win a 13 Grand Slams in doubles and 2 in Grand Slams in mixed doubles. Having said all that, I see her as an invincible player, when she is totally healthy and fully focused, both of which she didn't have in some big part of her career. For example in mid 2000s and in early 2010s.
I remember a statement of McEnroe: "I've seen them all, Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert was a machine... Monica Seles, Steffi Graf but I believe we're watching the greatest female player that's ever played this game." To be honest, I am against drawing comparisons between players of different eras, because basically it is like comparing apples and oranges. I am going to discuss this topic in another post. But at this point, McEnroe really seems to be right, in terms of technical and physical attributes, she seems invulnerable and unbeatable.
But, tennis is an individualistic sport. It'd be so cliche but you have to fight your opponent to submission on the court by yourself. There is no one out there to help you. There is no one to save your ass. And every occasion in tennis is a tournament so you cannot sacrifice one match, because you are not in the mood that day. Having all those powerful weapons, Serena lacks mental stability. What I mean is, stability during a match or during a bigger time period. You can remember how she reacted to the line referee, who calls a foul during Serena's serve in US Open 2010 I guess. Or again her reaction to the referee, when she had a penalty for shouting before Stosur hits the ball.
Maybe she does not like tennis as much as Nadal or Djokovic does. Maybe she hates working out every day. Or maybe she loves tennis but at the same she wants to do something else as well. For example in one of her interviews she says " 'I've never considered tennis as my only outlet. I've always liked doing different things when I was younger. I just never really liked focusing on tennis. I do see myself as a crossover.' (the text continues) Williams's ventures outside of tennis include degree studies at the Art Institute of Florida, designing outfits for her signature line, Aneres, with her sponsor Nike, and doing guest spots on television shows." In another interview she also said "I don't love tennis today but I'm here .... I can't live without it -- there's a difference between not loving something and not being able to live without it. I have never liked sports and could never understand how I became an athlete." When I first read this, it occurred to me that playing tennis and winning matches are like an addiction to her. I know it sounds silly but that sounds already silly to her so never mind, just respect her and her accomplishments.
Hence, you cannot blame not breaking all the records on her. She is still a big champion and has some room for a couple of more trophies I guess. After her last comeback she really looks fit and thinner. She has a record of 59-6 winning rate and lifted 6 trophies, more than everyone else. (Sharapova has 4 and Azarenka has 4) Especially for this incredible comeback in the age of 30 (now she is 31) she deserves another homage.
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