Courtney Nguyen SI sports writer:
New year, same result. Serena Williams successfully defended her title at the Brisbane International with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Victoria Azarenka in the final, a decisive signal to the rest of the field that the No. 1 player in the world has no plans on slowing down in 2014.
Serena wasn’t at her best and she didn’t have to be: More than her 120 mph serve, powerful groundstrokes, or athleticism, Serena’s ability to win matches while playing her B-level tennis is the most dominant aspect of her game. She wasn’t as sharp as she was at this time last year, when she won the title dropping just 17 games (she lost that many in her last two matches this year). Against Maria Sharapova in the semifinals, she struggled with her serve, double-faulting twice in the second set tiebreak, and still won 6-2, 7-6 (7). In Saturday’s final, she overcame a second set wobble after breaking to a 2-0 lead. Azarenka reeled off four straight games to earn a 4-2 lead before the American found her rhythm again and battled back to close out the match in two sets.
Serena is still beatable in Melbourne…hypothetically: In a wager of Serena vs. The Field at the upcoming Australian Open, which way to do you go?
http://tennis.si.com/2014/01/04/serena-williams-beats-victoria-azarenka-brisbane-international/