NZ part of Serena Williams’ masterplan to get back to top
The ASB Classic has gone from strength to strength over the past few years, but in 2017 it will surely reach its peak.
The confirmation that Serena Williams, who has won a staggering 22 Grand Slam singles titles is coming to Auckland in January, takes the Classic to new heights.
It’s not just the big appearance fee, likely to be upwards of $200,000 that draws a player like Williams to Auckland, but a determination from the 35-year-old to reclaim her status as the best player in the world.
She defeated Angelique Kerber 7-5 6-3 in the final of Wimbledon this year, but has been replaced at the top of the world rankings by the German, who won the Australian and US Opens.
ASB Classic tournament director Karl Budge says the reason why Williams wanted to come was because she sees Auckland as part of the journey to get back to the top.
‘‘I think the fact she lost to Kerber last year in the final of the Australian Open was a big one for her,’’ he said.
‘‘She’s probably the most competitive athlete I’ve ever seen and the thought of losing that final, in a place that she’s dominated, hurt her and I don’t think finishing second is going to be an acceptable option for her next year.
‘‘She wants to come out and get some tour level match practice under her belt and go into Melbourne in some really solid form.’’
Clearly Williams’ career is coming to an end and she’ll go down as perhaps the greatest players of all time, but it’ll take one more Grand Slam victory to confirm that.
Also with 22 Grand Slam singles wins is Steffi Graf, who dominated women’s tennis in a similarly emphatic fashion from the late 1980s through all the 1990s.
‘‘She likes winning, but she hates losing a lot more,’’ Budge said. ‘‘If she wants to go on and get Steffi’s (Open era) record outright, she probably realised she had some competition and needed to get focused.’’
Williams’ elder sister, Venus, has been at the last three Classics, winning it last year, and she has often said she would encourage Serena to play in Auckland. It’s doubtful that this had any impact, but Serena’s confirmation does block Venus returning.
The Classic is a tier two, International level tournament, which means only one top 10 player is allowed. Venus is No 7 in the world, but she does have a lot of points to defend over the last couple of months of the year.
‘‘It certainly makes it more challenging for us [to get Venus],’’ Budge said.
‘‘We haven’t really focused on that the last little while. Our plan has been to get this signed.
‘‘Tomorrow it starts again and we’ll look at who else in the women’s line-up we want to get and look at the men’s as well.’’
As well as being renowned for being one of the best ever players, Serena also has a reputation for pulling out of tournaments.
She was supposed to play at this week’s Wuhan Open and the China Open next week, but has withdrawn from both, citing a shoulder injury.
But Budge says he’s confident she will turn up to play in Auckland.
‘‘She’s got a track record of playing in week one and winning tournaments that week and that gives you the confidence,’’ he said.
‘‘At other times of the year you can draw some conclusions, but week one she plays and she’s captured titles.
‘‘So I’ve got no concerns and I just go back to what happened two weeks after us in Melbourne this year.
‘‘Serena was holding a runner’sup trophy and she doesn’t like that very much and she’ll be doing everything she can to win the first Grand Slam of 2017 and we form part of that plan.’’
Budge has always tried to get a couple of other big name players in draws, to keep the interest levels high if his marquee player loses in an early round.
Caroline Wozniacki would be a superb option to get back as she’s shown over the past month that she’s getting back to her best form.