Serena Seeks Grand Slam Victory

The march to a Grand Slam will cover a step at a time. There’s no sprint to the end line and glory, no easy way. Serena Williams must battle for this coveted and rare achievement, as outstanding as she is.
 
After a gloriously short victory on Monday night – a mere 30 minutes – Williams received a fair test at the U.S. Open tennis championship in Flushing, N.Y., on Wednesday from the world’s 110^th-ranked player.
 
Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands led 5-3 in the first set and then held a 4-0 tiebreak edge, but the inevitable came to pass and Serena took the first set 7-6 (5).
 
Serena took the second set 6-3 and now moves on to the third round on Friday against Bethanie Mattek-Sands, ranked 101^st.

The world’s No. 1 player stands but five matches from winning all four majors this season, a feat unmatched since Steffi Graf did it in 1988.

Did Serena relax after beating Bertens? No. She took the champion’s way. Unhappy with her serve and 34 unforced errors, she spent another 45 minutes on the practice court with coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

“Patrick told me some things that he saw that he thought I could work on to improve,” Serena said.

That’s how she got to be the best in the world. That’s how she put herself in a position to win the Grand Slam. That’s how the greats approach their goals.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .