Serena Williams's improved movement could be key to chasing down elusive 24th grand slam title

[ASFN Admin]

Serena Williams powered into her 40th grand slam semi-final on Tuesday by beating arguably the best defender in women's tennis at her own game. Simona Halep usually frustrates opponents with her ability to reach would-be winners - she did so in their last meeting with a near-faultless 6-2 6-2 demolishing of Williams at the Wimbledon 2019 final. But on Tuesday Williams turned the tables by finding an answer for every one of the Romanian's attempts to grind her down, and displaying the significant improvement in her on-court movement which has turned heads in Melbourne. Defensive work and speed were strengths Williams was once known for - footwork to marvel at and covering the court with ease. But since returning from the birth of her first child in 2017 it has been a weakness preyed upon by her opponents. "If they can get Serena moving around, they will have a chance here," has so often been the musing of commentators, as challengers successfully targeted Williams's sometimes laboured lunging or awkward flat-footedness. This Australian Open has been a different story though. The 39-year-old has been explosive, chasing down balls to keep points alive, and clinching longer rallies where she previously would have run out of steam. Against Halep, it gave her more time for decision-making to hit ruthless winners - 24 in total - later on in points and ease to a 6-3 6-3 win. When asked post-match how long it had been since she felt those longer rallies were hers to win, Williams was in a jovial mood: "It's definitely been a minute. It's been a long minute. I think the summer of 1926 was the last time I felt that." But this shift in Williams's game is no laughing matter for her opponents, and she knows it. She nodded enthusiastically when on-court interviewer Jim Courier admired her defensive work in the aftermath of her win: "Last year my coach Patrick [Mouratoglou] had a long talk with me about how I needed to be better on defence." "I know throughout my career speed has been one thing that’s been super good in my game. Sometimes I’m getting points and getting balls and I know I have the legs to do it. So it’s exciting."

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