Serena Williams, wonderful, does not want to retire: she fell between the two of the world and goes more to the US Open

Serena Williams refuses to let go of the racket. The American, who a few weeks ago had warned that this US Open it could be her last tournament, she gave herself another tennis life with a resounding victory against the number two in the world and second favorite of the tournament. In a match of great intensity and with an impressive audience, the winner of 23 Grand Slams won 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-2 against the Estonian Anett Kontaveit and entered the third round of the North American Major. There will therefore be at least one more function than the former number one, this Friday against the Australian Ajla Tomljanovic.

The reception of the American did not have the show on Monday, when before and after her first match, the organization of the tournament paid her a heartfelt tribute (it was held that day for logistical reasons), with exceptional guests , including, the huge Billie Jean King– and also a couple of videos that portray the different facets narrated Queen Latifa Y Oprah Winfreythat this Wednesday reappeared with a story on the big screens.

This Wednesday, Serena stepped onto the pitch as if it were just another match, very focused and dressed in her tulle and diamond dress – albeit without the long train she wore in the first round – and her sneakers specially designed for the ‘occasion. .

It was the audience who added color and warmth to his welcome. Arthur Ashe was overwhelmed, despite demand for tickets for Wednesday’s night session skyrocketing after former number one’s win against Montenegrin Danka Kovinic on Monday and prices soared to 140 percent. Hours before the game, ticket prices started at $ 300 and jumped to over $ 7,000, depending on location.

In the stands, as in his first presentation, there were also celebrities, from Spike Lee Y Zendaya As far as Tiger Woodswho settled in Williams’ garage.

On the pitch, the match started on an equal footing. Kontaveit did not allow himself to be overwhelmed by the situation and the context and kept his first serving game in love with him, which began with a 1-0 lead. Williams drew 1-1 without problems. And the score remained unchanged for several games, with the two comfortable with their serve, albeit somewhat erratic.

Serena, who at first couldn’t keep up the pace against a rival who hit the ball well and was aggressive, began to move better as the minutes went by and in the seventh game she made the Estonian work, who had to lift three break points and it took 12 minutes to hold the serve and take a 4-3 lead.

A couple of games later, the American finally got a break to break the parity and got a chance to close the serve set. But he played a disastrous game: with three unforced errors, he was down 0-40. And after saving a break point, he committed a double fault and gave the break to Kontaveit.

The set eventually went to the tie break, where the American made some good shots, hit the ball with a lot of power and took the 7-4. The audience exploded. Tiger also jumped out of his chair and celebrated his compatriot’s partial victory with a clenched fist.

Kontaveit came out very focused to play the second set and, with sheer strength, hit early. Because he put together two opening breaks – in the first and third sets, giving up just one point – and took the 3-0 lead in just 13 minutes.

From her stage, Serena received encouragement from her husband Alexis Alexis Ohanian, mother Oracene and sister Venus, who asked her to keep fighting. Even the spectators, who had clearly favored her, tried to infect her with energy, celebrating her every success and applauding every point she gained about her.

Thus, the winner of 23 Grand Slams managed to bridge the gap: she put pressure on the Estonian in the fourth game and led her to fail several times, which allowed her to steal the serve and score 1-3. But she failed to hold up the serve, in a long fifth game, in which she ran a lot but also made many mistakes.

Kontaveit added her third break of the set and climbed 4-1. And two games later, the second seed ended the chapter 5-2 and forced the third.

Serena took advantage of the break to go to the locker room to change and came back refreshed. After winning her serving match (1-0), she broke her third break point of a very close second match and went 2-0, sparking a new deafening ovation from the crowd.

Kontaveit does not despair and manages to recover the service immediately (1-2). But the happiness of the Estonian did not last long, because Williams fed on the energy of the people, increased the intensity and began to press more and more. Thus, he broke his rival’s serve again and took the lead 4-1. And in the seventh game, he saved a break point against and was 5-2.

The responsibility of serving to extend the story was too much for the world number two, who played the entire game “on the road”. A double fault and two unforced errors left Serena with three match points in her favor. And the tennis queen signed the victory with a backhand winner, which blew up the stadium.

Tireless, Serena refuses to let go of the racket. On Friday he will look for another win to extend an extraordinary career a little further.