betprepare.com

Azarenka: I need to go out there and prove myself, to talk about it is pointless

Serena beat Azarenka in the last 5 final and 3 semifinal matches but the two matches of this season in which Azarenka had a chance to win, will most definitely be an extra incentive for her in an attempt to finally bring down Serena. Her performances at Wimbledon this season are to give her confidence as well

Getty Images

Serena struggled quite a lot in the first week here. She lost 5 sets at Roland Garos and struggled in the first three rounds here - against Gasparyan and Babos in the opening sets, against Watson in the second and particularity in the third one where she was one point short of allowing the opponent to take a 4-0 lead. Watson also later served for the match. Serena is not injured or anything like that, it was all just bad game. 

Round 4 saw Serena take on sister Venus, who is always a great challenge for her. Venus won the Wimbledon title five times and reached another 3 finals, being the only player who beat Serena twice on grass court. This time, however, Venus stood no chance against her younger sister. Serena finished the match with 10 aces, 36 winners and only 13 errors. Venus in the end won 9 games even though Serena could have limited her to about half of that had it been necessary. That is how dominant she was on the court. 

- I knew that when I play Venus, who beat me more times than anyone else, I need to be tough. I had to take more risk, make less mistakes and was in the end able to do so - Serena said after what was her best performance at this season's Wimbledon:

Getty Images

- Venus was doing very well. She probably could have done better. I saw her practice every day and she's feeling better. That reflected upon her performances here. 

Serena's serve was great as she allowed Venus only two break point opportunities and lost only one service game. Return was good as well, she was composed and aggressive and when so, Serena seems unstoppable. Venus experienced it first-hand yesterday.

- Beating her will be very easy. She might not have had the best day in the last round but she still found a way to beat a good opponent. That is what you need to win the title. 

Serena is now facing Victoria Azarenka. The two of them have what is probably the greatest rivalry in the tennis world over the past few years. Serena has always been the toughest opponent for Azarenka, having beaten her in the 5 final and 3 semifinal matches over the past 5 years. If it hadn't been for Serena, Azarenka would have had a lot more trophies, among them the Wimbledon title from three years ago and the gold medal from the London Olympics. 

They met twice this season, both times on clay court. Azarenka could have won both of them but ended up losing in three sets. She had three straight match points in her service game in Madrid but double-faulted and broke in the most important part of the match. Azarenka was one set ahead at Roland Garros, had 4-2 in the second set and 2-0 in the third one. Serena won 6 straight games in the third and second sets.

- I don't want to be happy by being close to Serena, that's not good enough for me - Azarenka said. 

She said that the lack of media interest in her suits her as she can focus on tennis only like that. That tennis is looking very good at Wimbledon this year as Azarenka sailed past Bencic to record her fourth straight sets win. She has been faced with different tennis styles but her game was top level in each and every match. She was extremely aggressive in all of her matches, recorded 29 winners against Bencic and only 5 errors in the rallies. Her toughness, aggressiveness, the ability to read the game and to cover ground have really been great here. Sacha Bajin, Serena's former sparring partner whom she worked with for year, is definitely going to help Azarenka sine he's working with her now. 

- We'll see tomorrow, I cannot predict the future. I'm here to work hard, to play my game and be focused. I need to go out here and prove myself. To talk about it is pointless to me - Azarenka said.