Tennis Time: Roger Federer, Serena Williams Win Australian Open

Author: Min-Q Kim
Posted on: Tuesday February 2, 2010 at 7:00 AM
Filed under: sports, tennis, australian open, roger federer, serena williams, exclusive

Roger Federer on the Men's side, Serena Williams on the Women's side. The blue court surface notwithstanding, the 2010 Australian Open never claimed it'd be original. It's the fifth time Federer and Williams have conquered the same major, dating back to Wimbledon in '03. Individually, it's Federer's 16th major title (more than any other men's player ever), Williams' 12th (not a record, but still pretty good).

This tournament was retribution for Federer, who was left in tears at the trophy stand last year after dropping a gut-wrenching 5-set marathon against his nemesis Rafael Nadal. A knee injury took down Nadal at this year's tournament, and Federer took care of the rest. Britain's great hope, Andy Murray, showed some fight in the final match against Federer, but far too little and far too late. It was Murray who was in tears at this year's awards ceremony, where he said, quite poignantly, "I can cry like Roger, it's a shame I can't play like him."

Serena Williams overpowered the field on her way to her 12th major, pulling her even with Billie Jean King on the all-time Grand Slam Women's Titles list. King was on hand to watch the final between Williams and Justine Henin, which went the full 3 sets. Serena also teamed with her sister Venus to win the doubles tournament in Melbourne. All in a day's work, I suppose.

Here's a tidbit for the hecklers in the audience. If you think the athletes in the arena don't hear you, think again. Serena Williams took offense to a Justine Henin supporter's unwarranted commentary, and as it turns out, the fan was probably better off keeping his thoughts to himself.

"I think everyone was [cheering] for Justine," Williams said. "But you know what really helped me out? This one guy was like, 'You can beat her, Justine; she's not that good.'"

"I think I won all the games after that because that's totally rude."