AUSTRALIAN OPEN: BACK TO NOSTALGIA & TIME-TRAVELLING TO THE FUTURE
Serena’s 6-4 6-4 win over her 36-year-old sister Venus earned her a 23rd Grand Slam title, the most by any singles player in the open era
it the most senior final in Grand Slam history. It had also been the first time that all four singles finalists in the open era were 30 or over.
It was difficult to believe that Venus, in her first Grand Slam final in nearly eight years, still struggles with crippling semi- permanent Sjogren’s syndrome, or that Nadal, in his first Grand Slam final in nearly three years, has had career-threatening multiple knee and wrist injuries.
The last time a Grand Slam billing boasted the two WiIliams sisters plus Federer vs. Nadal for its singles finals was back in 2008 - though none of the famous four played then as they did now.
Their styles have been adapted to a new world and new realities. This made the prevailing fantasy feel less like a backwards emotional journey and more that of time-travellers, with altered coordinates advancing to a different future.
Federer was slimmer and his backhand topspin drive much better than it had been, while Nadal mixed up his serves more and came forward more often; Serena went for broke whenever possible, winning 80 per cent of rallies of four shots or fewer, while Venus sought different adaptations for each opponent, claiming she was now “versatile”.
If we include two semi-finalists in the venerable mix - Stan Wawrinka, aged 31, and Mirjana Lukic-Baroni, the 34-year-old who overcame family trauma and a clandestine escape from Croatia before reaching her first major semi for 18 years - it emphasises a generational shift like never before.
Why has this happened now? Not only because the oldies have adapted so well, but perhaps because starting a new season
INTERNATIONALTENNISMAGAZINE March 2017 | 9
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