Serena Williams fell back onto the court in a split and watched as the ball cruised over the net headed for the far corner, away from Bethanie Mattek-Sands’s reach.
Williams sat on the court and watched as the ball landed safely inside the line for a winner. Williams bent over, clenched her fists and yelled triumphantly.
After two sets of tense tennis, momentum finally tilted in Williams’s favor.
Williams has stalked the Grand Slam from continent to continent since January, but even though there have been times of frustration and vulnerability, she has been the last one standing every time.