Today, German tennis player Angelique Kerber defeated defending champion Serena Williams in the Australian Open 2016 Final at Rod Laver Arena.
Now I've won the Australian Open...that sounds really weird!—Angelique Kerber
This was the first Grand Slam event title for Kerber. Since Steffi Graf won the French Open in 1994, no German until Kerber won a Grand Slam event. Williams missed a chance to equal the 22 Grand Slam event title record by Graf.
The seventh-seeded Kerber took the early lead winning the opening set 6–4 in 39 minutes, with five aces throughout the match. Williams, with seven aces throughout the match, snatched the second set 6–3 in just 33 minutes. Kerber had just thirteen unforced errors compared to Williams's 46.
The third set was the longest one, lasting 56 minutes. Kerber won the set 6–4 to take the title. Williams committed three double faults in the last set.
Following the match, Kerber said "I'm a really normal girl, I like going out to dinner & going to the cinema. Like any girl [...] Now I've won the Australian Open...that sounds really weird!" She added that Graf was still an idol for her.
Novak Djokovic, five-time Australian Open men's champion, congratulated her on Twitter, and appreciated both players' sportsmanship. Djokovic is to play Andy Murray tomorrow in the men's final.
Sources
- Michael Beattie. Kerber stuns Serena — Australian Open, January 30, 2016
- Angelique Kerber stuns Serena Williams to win Australian Open — BBC Sport, January 30, 2016
- Match Statistics - Scores and Stats - Australian Open Tennis Championships 2016 — Australian Open, January 30, 2016
- Australian Open. Australian Open | Twitter — Twitter, January 30, 2016
- Australian Open: Serena Williams & Djokovic win but Kvitova loses — BBC Sport, January 20, 2016
Source & Attribution
Originally published by Wikinews on January 30, 2016. Original author: Wikinews.
CC BY 2.5. Photograph: File photo of Angelique Kerber, winner of the Aus Open 2016
Image: Foto: Stefan Brending / Lizenz: Creative Commons CC-by-sa-3.0 de. Photo: Stefan Brending (2eight) Own work Source file. CC BY-SA 3.0 de. CC BY-SA 3.0 de.
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