#360view: Serena seven away from tennis divinity as Grand Slam beckons

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  • Cusp of greatness: Serena.

    In sport, the word ‘history’ is used almost every single day. Someone, somewhere, is becoming the youngest or oldest or fastest or the very first to accomplish some amazing feat. And a few days later, that feat can be usurped by someone else who is younger or older or faster, or the very first to do it better. Which is why it feels insufficient to label what Serena Williams is on the verge of achieving over the next two weeks in New York as ‘making history’ – her quest for the rare Grand Slam is unequivocally much bigger than that.

    Since her early days on tour, Serena has always transcended the sport. She and her sister Venus were not just tennis champions; they broke colour barriers, stood for equal pay, and earned megastar status typically associated with Hollywood not the WTA.

    People come down hard on American tennis these days but just as they start to miss the days of Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras, they remember that Serena is still bossing the women’s tour and has been keeping the torch burning bright, winning 21 majors that spanned three different decades.

    She turns 34 next month and heads to the US Open ranked No1 for a 256th week. She is the oldest woman to ever hold that spot. That’s just one of countless records the American has achieved so far. But what she’s gunning for in New York is a whole other animal. Already the holder of all four grand slams at the moment, Williams could capture a fifth consecutive major and fourth of the season at the US Open.

    Only five people in history have managed to win all four slams in one year – Don Budge in 1938, Maureen Connelly in 1953, Rod Laver in 1962 and 1969, Margaret Court in 1970 and Steffi Graf in 1988. Only three have done it in the Open Era. Arguably the hardest feat to pull off in tennis, the Grand Slam is something not even Roger Federer – the man considered to be the greatest of all time – has managed to do.

    – Also: Who is tennis’ greatest? Federer, Nadal or Djokovic?
    – Cincinnati: Federer defeats Djokovic for seventh title
    – Related: Serena claims another title with victory over Halep

    Many tennis fans and players of this generation were not alive the last time a Grand Slam was achieved which is why it has a mythical attachment to it and why Serena’s assault on it is the biggest thing to happen to the sport in a very long time.

    The stars have aligned in a way where Serena lands in Flushing Meadows not only looking to complete the Grand Slam, but she could also tie Graf’s Open Era record of 22 majors, and she’d be doing it on home soil, at a tournament where she has won six times, including the last three.

    The world No 1 could not ask for any better circumstances. Talk of the Grand Slam has taken over in the United States even though tennis barely clings onto a place in the list of top 10 most popular sports there. Want a sign of just how huge a Serena Grand Slam would be in America? She is on the national cover of Sports Illustrated this month, 16 years after the only other time she was on it back in 1999.

    If American tennis has been ailing, Serena winning a fourth major in 2015 could prove the antidote. She could provide the spark needed to catch the attention of all the young athletes who overlook tennis and opt for another sport.

    The best thing about this Grand Slam story line is that it is actually achievable. Serena is in-form, is on a 21-match winning streak in New York, has lost just twice in 2015 and looks fitter than she has ever been. She won the Australian Open final fighting a terrible bug, and was also very sick during her last two matches at Roland Garros. She’s climbed back from so many sets down this season and by now, she must feel that she can overcome anything at this point.

    The fact that everyone feels she can win it is adding intrigue to the plot and while some have their eyes on Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and co, all eyes are undoubtedly on Serena. She is seven matches away from tennis divinity.

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