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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 12 JULY 2015 53 Sport TENNIS SPORTTODAY Williams defeats spirited Muguruza in women's Wimbledon final AFTER losing a close first set and battling bravely to come back from 5-1 down in the second to Serena Williams, 21-year-old Garbine Muguruza was defeated after one hour and 23 minutes, to leave Williams to receive the ac- claim of the Centre Crowd. At 33 years and 289 days, Wil- liams surpasses Martina Navra- tilova as the oldest player to win Wimbledon, and any of the other three Grand Slams, in the Open era. Muguruza, born in Venezuela and raised in Barcelona, had in- sisted facing Serena was a task to be relished rather than feared. She was proving true to her bold claim and, by the time Muguruza moved into a 4-2 lead, it seemed an epic shock was on the cards. However, Williams had recov- ered from worse predicaments earlier in the tournament. With the pressure ratcheted up, the inevitable Serena break back arrived in the eighth game when Muguruza missed with a wild forehand. Williams scented blood and Muguruza crumbled, a double- fault on set point gift-wrapping the lead to Serena in a set that had been the underdog's for the taking. The American had won 28 of her last 30 tour-level finals, in- cluding her last nine at the ma- jors, and, in her eighth Wimble- don final, she was finally back in that muscular groove. Serena's fierce grimace and clenched fist after breaking in the fourth game of the second set suggested the finish line was in sight But, serving for the match with 5-1 and then 5-3 leads, Wil- liams was gripped by a bad case of nerves and Muguruza broke twice to prolong the contest. Finally able to compose herself, Williams broke in the next game to seal yet another legacy-defin- ing success. Her sixth Wimbledon crown brought a slew of other remarka- ble landmarks that underline her credentials as one of the greatest female athletes of all time. The American's 21st Grand Slam crown and 68th tour-level title earned her a cheque for £1.8 million. But it is her legacy rather than her bank balance that concerns Williams these days and she now holds all four Grand Slam titles at the same time - the rare 'Serena Slam' she last achieved in 2002- 03. Williams is the first woman to land the French Open and Wim- bledon back-to-back since she last won that difficult double in 2002. Lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish for the first time since 2012 also leaves Serena needing only to defend the US Open to be- come the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to claim a calendar Grand Slam. She is just one major title be- hind Graf on the Open era lea- derboard and within three of all-time record holder Margaret Court's tally of 24. She is the first player since Graf in 1988 to win Wimbledon and the Australian and French Opens in the same year. Given Serena's 39-1 record in 2015 and her astonishing streak of 28 consecutive Grand Slam match victories, few would bet against the American mak- ing more history in New York in August. Serena Williams moved a step closer to becoming the great women's tennis player of all time with a 6-4 6-4 victory over 20th seed Garbiñe Muguruza in the Wimbledon final Williams and Muguruza with their respective trophies