By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, June 4, 2016
Garbine Muguruza landed a lob on the line converting her fifth championship point to dethrone defending champion Serena Williams, 7-5, 6-4, in the Roland Garros final.
Photo credit: FFT
Four championship points dissipated in the dirt when Garbiñe Muguruza sprung a flash of glorious daylight at the end of the line.
Lofting a rainbow lob that soared over Serena Williams' head and kissed the back of the baseline, Muguruza dropped her racquet, covered her face with her hands in disbelief and dropped flat on her back absorbing a brilliant 7-5, 6-4 victory in the Roland Garros final to capture her first career Grand Slam championship.
In a rematch of the 2015 Wimbledon final, Muguruza disarmed the defending champion with the depth and pace of her baseline blasts and dethroned her with stunning finesse. The lone lob she hit all afternoon sealed her first clay-court championship.
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"I can't explain with words what this day means to me," Muguruza told the fans afterward. "You work all your life to get here. For Spain and for me this is just amazing. Thank you all for being here."
Demolishing the top seed's second serve, drilling drives down the line on pivotal points and displaying the poise of a champion, the 22-year-old Muguruza denied Williams' quest for a 22nd Grand Slam title to match Steffi Graf's Open Era record.
Playing her fourth match in four days, the 34-year-old American, who received treatment for an abductor strain that left her looking sluggish in her quarterfinal and semifinal wins, credited Muguruza's aggression as a key to the match.
"I'm not one to ever make excuses and say, like, Oh, my adductor was hurting or whatever," Williams said. "I think at the end of the day I didn't play the game I needed to play to win and she did. Adductor or not, she played to win. You know, that's what she did."
Powerful strikes put Muguruza in a winning position; striking poise helped her close to become just the fifth woman to beat Williams in a major final. It was Muguruza's second Roland Garros over the world No. 1 in three years, following the 6-2, 6-2 thrashing she dispensed at the 2014 French Open, and announced her as a true rival for Williams.
Contesting her first career clay-court final, the woman in the pale yellow dress shined on the terre battue becoming the second Spanish woman to raise the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen and first since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario won Roland Garros in 1998.
Despite scattering nine double faults, Muguruza protected her serve vigilantly fighting off six of eight break points.
Veteran Roberta Vinci masterfully mixed her spins and speeds befuddling Serena in the 2015 US Open semifinal to deny her quest for the Grand Slam. In an audacious display of power baseline tennis, Muguruza prowled the baseline, stood toe-to-toe with the game's most explosive player and hit her way into history. She won 20 of 35 points played on Williams' second serve and broke serve four times.
"It was just so many holes. Like I could have served better," said Williams, whose major final record fell to 21-6. "I mean, I made a lot of errors on my return. You know, I did definitely try out there today, but did I play better than the other matches? It's a totally different game."
Muguruza won the toss and elected to receive aiming to challenge the champion's serve at the start.
Thumping her serve with more vigor than she did at the start of her quarterfinal and semifinal wins, Williams won eight of the first nine points on serve, including a second serve ace wide.
The top seed used the drop shot to drag the six-foot Spaniard into an error then banged an inside-out forehand for break point. Muguruza saved it with a flurry of forehands then carved an ace down the T to erase a second break point.
Pausing between serves as if plotting the point in her head, Muguruza worked through a demanding nine-minute hold to level after four games.
World No. 60 Yulia Putintseva repeatedly attacked Williams' backhand and came within five points of a massive quarterfinal upset.
Applying that tactic, Muguruza banged away at her backhand in the fifth game eliciting three errors from the two-hander. Down break point, Williams' tightened tossing in her first double fault to donate the break and a 3-2 lead.
Withstanding two double faults, Muguruza blasted a flat forehand winner down the line to consolidate at 30.
The ability to improvise off bad bounces and body shots served Williams well as she danced around the ball and slashed an inside-out forehand for break point. Muguruza missed the baseline as Williams broke back for 4-all.
Changing direction brilliantly, Muguruza cracked a backhand winner down the line for break point. A lunging Williams could not handle a crosscourt blast that ricocheted off her racquet as Muguruza broke again for 6-5.
The breeze blew the back of Muguruza's pale yellow skirt up a bit as she stepped up to serve for the set. Staring down double break point, the Spaniard rocketed a pair of serves, including an ace that cleaned the center stripe, to deny them.
Facing set point, Williams did not hold back belting a forehand swing volley down the line. She saved a second set point with a crushing forehand.
On her third set point, Muguruza leaned into lashing a backhand winner down the line to collect a combustible 57-minute opener.
"She won the first set by one point," Williams said. "I mean, that just goes to show you you really have to play the big points well, and I think she played the big points really well."
Empowered, Muguruza continued cracking her two-hander crosscourt to open the second set with her third break of the day.
The lone blight on an otherwise spotless performance was Muguruza's second serve. In a horrid three double fault game, including successive doubles, Muguruza gave back the break with her seventh double fault.
Shaking that off, Muguruza slashed another dagger down the line breaking again for 2-1.
Sliding an ace out wide, Muguruza completed a confident hold for 5-3. She was four points from the raising the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen.
Hitting off her back foot, Williams put a backhand into net for double championship point. The champion fought off both, but a biting return down the line presented a third championship point. A fearless Williams curled a crosscourt forehand inside the line to deny it.
Pushing a drop shot into net, Williams bent over disgusted by her shot selection. On the fourth championship point, Muguruza tried to tee off on a second serve, but her backhand missed the mark.
Pure resilience, powerful determination and a razor-sharp forehand down the line helped Williams fight through a tense game denying all four championship points and pacing slowly to her seat down 4-5.
Undaunted, Muguruza quickly moved out to a 40-love lead serving for the title.
On the fifth championship point, Williams attacked stretching Muguruza behind the baseline. She answered with the magical lob cleaned the baseline. Williams watched the shot land, smiled at the irony of the touching ending and applauded the new champion.
Asked how she stayed so calm amid spiking pressure when she served for the title, Muguruza told NBC's Mary Carillo, "I have no idea.I said 'Garbine be calm, don't be nervous. I practiced all my life for this so that's the moment."
An ascendent Muguruza will rise to No. 2 when the new WTA rankings are released on Monday; she's already emerged as a real rival for world No. 1.
A disconsolate Williams showed a champion's character and class embracing Muguruza in the aftermath of another painful major loss.
History is within Williams' grasp only to slip past with her Australian Open final loss to Angelique Kerber and Muguruza's masterful performance today. Asked how she'll respond to the pressure of her pursuit, Williams said there's only one way: Keep working.
"I ran up against two players that (played well). I think in Australia, Kerber made 16 errors in three sets, you know, so what do you do in that situation?" Williams said. "Today Garbiñe played unbelievable. The only thing I can do is just keep trying."