Sports stats



WTT Washington Kastles

Serena Captures 20th Grand Slam Singles Title; Visiting WTT Stars Also Shine at French Open

June 8, 2015 - World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


Sweeping the last six games of the French Open final, Serena Williams captured the 20th Grand Slam singles title of her career on Saturday.

Only Margaret Smith Court (24) and Steffi Graf (22) have won more, but with Williams atop the rankings for the 120th straight week, she shows no signs of stopping short of a new record.

Williams defeated first-time finalist Lucie Safarova 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-2 for her 35th major championship overall, including 13 women's doubles titles with her sister and Kastles teammate Venus Williams. Serena also won a pair of mixed doubles majors early in her career with Max Mirnyi.

Of her 35 Grand Slam titles, Williams had never experienced a run as tough as the 2015 French Open.

The World No. 1 dropped five sets in Paris, eclipsing the four she lost en route to her first Grand Slam singles title at the 1999 US Open. She and Mirnyi also lost four sets at the All England Club before winning Wimbledon in 1998.

For about an hour, it appeared as if Williams' match with Safarova would require no such drama.

After falling behind in four of her first six matches, Williams hit a ferocious forehand return winner to convert the only break of the opening set.

Backhand winners gave Williams two breaks and a 4-1 lead in the second. Double faults, however, cost her both breaks and allowed Safarova to even the set at 4-4.

Never one to hide her emotions, Williams scolded herself by howling: "What are you doing?" Moments later, she raised both of her arms in redemption following a return winner that gave her the opportunity to serve for the championship.

Down 6-5, Safarova countered with three down-the-line winners to force a tiebreaker, which she secured when Williams netted a return.

The Czech added the first two games of the third set to inch closer to a stunning upset. Williams refused to lose, recovering the break on a Safarova double fault then muscling four unreturnable serves to reclaim a 3-2 lead.

Any hopes Safarova had left were dashed thereafter when Williams hit a left-handed forehand to extend a 19-shot rally, eventually forcing an error that effectively ended the match.

With one last remarkable return, Williams clinched her third successive Grand Slam singles title.

If she wins Wimbledon for the sixth time on July 11, Williams will hold all four Grand Slam championships at the same time. She already accomplished a 'Serena Slam' when she captured titles at the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open in 2002, followed by the Australian Open in 2003.

Williams is also the first singles player since Jennifer Capriati in 2001 to win the Australian Open and French Open in the same season. That puts the Kastles star halfway to an elusive calendar Grand Slam. Steffi Graf was the last woman to sweep the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open singles titles in 1988.

Ironically, Safarova is also in contention for a calendar Grand Slam. She and Bethanie Mattek-Sands are the Australian Open and French Open doubles champions. Serena and Venus Williams also won the first two majors of the year in 2010, but only one team has ever swept all four: Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver in 1984.

Martina Hingis of the Kastles won all four Grand Slam women's doubles titles in 1998 with two different partners: Mirjana Lucic-Baroni at the Australian Open and Jana Novotna at the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.

All this history talk has us excited that Kastles season is only one month away! Hingis and the Williams sisters will lead the Kastles' quest for the first 5-Peat in 40 years of Mylan World TeamTennis.

Tickets to several matches, including Serena Williams' return on July 21, are going fast. Sell-outs are expected, so don't wait to secure your seats. Individual match tickets starting at $12 are available at Ticketmaster.com.

Freedoms' Marcelo Melo Wins 1st Grand Slam Title

Gabashvili, Fritz Among Other Visiting Players to Shine in Paris

Serena Williams wasn't the only Mylan World TeamTennis star to shine at the French Open.

Reigning WTT Male MVP Marcelo Melo, who leads the Philadelphia Freedoms into Kastles Stadium July 18, won his first major title in men's doubles.

Melo and Ivan Dodig had lost all three of their previous finals against the top-ranked team of Bob and Mike Bryan, including the championship match at Wimbledon in 2013. The Americans led by a set and a break on Saturday before Melo hit a half-volley winner on championship point to claim a dramatic 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-5 win.

All was not lost for Mike Bryan, who two days earlier teamed with Bethanie Mattek-Sands to capture his fourth Grand Slam mixed doubles title. The Bryan brothers are playing three matches for the California Dream July 23-26, none of which come against the Kastles.

TEYMURAZ GABASHVILI

WTT Team: Austin Aces

DC Date: July 14 (Tickets)

French Open: Singles 4th Round

New Ranking: No. 58 in Singles

Paris Recap: Gabashvili did not drop a set en route to the fourth round, matching his career-best showing at a Grand Slam. The Russian upset No. 11 seed Feliciano Lopez along the way.

TAYLOR FRITZ

WTT Team: San Diego Aviators

DC Date: July 16 (Tickets)

French Open: Boys' Singles Finalist

New Ranking: No. 1 in Juniors

Paris Recap: Fritz became the No. 1 junior in the world after winning 10 straight sets in the French Open boys' singles event. He lost the final in three sets to fellow American Tommy Paul.

MARCELO MELO

WTT Team: Philadelphia Freedoms

DC Date: July 18 (Tickets)

French Open: Doubles Champion

New Ranking: No. 3 in Doubles

Paris Recap: After finishing as a Grand Slam runner-up three times in men's and mixed doubles, Melo emerged with his first major title and denied Bob and Mike Bryan their 17th as a team.

IRINA FALCONI

WTT Team: Boston Lobsters

DC Dates: July 21 and 29 (Tickets)

French Open: Singles 3rd Round

New Ranking: No. 71 in Singles

Paris Recap: Falconi jumped 14 spots to a career-high ranking after winning a pair of matches in Paris. She will face Serena Williams when the French Open champion returns to D.C. on July 21.

ANNA-LENA GROENEFELD

WTT Team: Springfield Lasers

DC Date: July 26 (Tickets)

French Open: Mixed 2nd Round

New Ranking: No. 35 in Doubles

Paris Recap: Groenefeld and Jean-Julien Rojer, the defending mixed doubles champions, routed No. 1 seeds Sania Mirza and Bruno Soares 6-2, 6-2 before falling in the second round.

AISAM-UL-HAQ QURESHI

WTT Team: California Dream

DC Date: July 27 (Tickets)

French Open: Mixed Quarterfinals

New Ranking: No. 56 in Doubles

Paris Recap: Qureshi and the Kastles' Anastasia Rodionova teamed for the first time and beat two-time Grand Slam champs Daniel Nestor and Kristina Mladenovic to reach the quarterfinals.

• Discuss this story on the World TeamTennis message board...

World TeamTennis Stories from June 8, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central