The world's top-seeded women's tennis player, Serena Williams, fell short in tying Steffi Graf with the second most majors on Saturday, as Germany's seventh-seeded Angelique Kerber stunned Williams in three sets 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in the Australian Open final.
Williams was stunned at the end of last year's major season when unseeded Roberta Vinci ended her chance at winning a calendar-year Grand Slam in the semifinals of the U.S. Open. Williams struggled in Saturday's final with 46 unforced errors, while Kerber played arguably the best match of her career.
Kerber becomes the second German women to win a Grand Slam title in the Open Era, and she fell to the ground with tears in her eyes after beating one of the best tennis players to ever pick up a racket. "I got my second chance, and this is my dream come true," said Kerber, via ESPN. "My whole life I am working really hard, and now I am here and call myself a Grand Slam champion."
Kerber's road to winning the Australian Open started off with a uneasy start, as she was one point away from exiting the Australian Open in the opening round but continued to battle back and gained momentum with each match. Williams' normal dominant serve wasn't a factor in Saturday's final, as Kerber won more first serve points then the all-time great.
"Every time I walk in this room, everyone expects me to win every single match, every single day of my life," said Williams, via ESPN. "As much as I would like to be a robot, I'm not. I try to. But, you know, I do the best that I can." The 21-time major winner was gracious in her defeat, and she will now look to the French Open to tie Graf with 22 majors.
