At the outset, Serena Williams was grimacing and cursing and, worst of all, losing by a lot. Then, suddenly, the 19-time Grand Slam singles champion was putting shots right where she wanted, imposing her will as only she can. And the only anger Williams displayed was directed at her opponent, Victoria Azarenka, while they traded gestures and words over the chair umpire's decision to replay a key point.
By the end, when she was aggressively grabbing the final six games and 10 of the final 12, all that really mattered was that the No. 1-ranked Williams was not going to let this one get away. Williams erased deficit after deficit and beat former No. 1 Azarenka 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Saturday in a third-round French Open match filled with momentum swings and one GIF-ready contentious exchange. "I was just really down and out in that match, and I just feel like, you know, I just really zeroed in," Williams said. "I really focused and I really wanted to win that."
Williams is 28-1 in 2015, 9-0 in three-setters. The American improved to 50-11 at Roland Garros, making her the first woman since 1968, when Grand Slam tournaments admitted professionals, to have that many wins at each major. She's never been as comfortable or confident on the French Open's dusty red clay as with grass or hard courts underfoot, exiting in the second round last year and the first in 2012. She's been past the quarterfinals once in the past 12 years — in 2013, when she won her second French Open title.
Azarenka owns a pair of Australian Open trophies. She also was twice a U.S. Openfinalist, but lost each time to Williams, who has won 16 of their 19 matchups. They tend to be close as can be: This month on clay in Madrid, Williams won after Azarenka double-faulted three times while serving for the match. On the last point of the second set, Azarenka hit a shot that landed near the baseline. Williams netted a response at about the same time an "out" call came. Chair umpire Kader Nouni decided the point should be replayed, which Azarenka disputed. She and Williams wound up looking at each other, and Azarenka waved her hand, as if to say, "Eh, never mind." Williams then appeared to tell Azarenka not to wag her hand.
Azarenka, who still was steamed about Nouni's ruling after the match, lost the replayed point, giving Williams the set, and was warned for a visible obscenity. Azarenka headed to a bathroom break. When she returned, she took a 2-0 lead in the third set. Williams wouldn't drop another game. The two are friends away from the court, and both downplayed whatever testiness there seemed to be between them on Saturday.
"We don't have any air to clear," Azarenka said. "But I gave her a pair of my shorts because she really liked them. True story." Former champion Ana Ivanovic returned to the quarterfinals of the French Open for the first time since her triumph at Roland Garros seven years ago after beating ninth-seeded Russian Ekaterina Makarova 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 on Sunday.
"Amazing really. To be honest, coming in to the tournament I didn't expect it at all," Ivanovic said. The nervous Cornet was off to a bad start in her fourth-round match against Svitolina on center court, trailing 3-0 after dropping her serve twice when their match was suspended after 21 minutes. The rain gave her the chance to refocus in the locker room but she lost the first six points when play resumed.
The 29th-seeded Frenchwoman lost her temper near the end, remonstrating with the umpire over a shot that was called out in the 11th game of the second set. Cornet complained to the umpire, saying "you look in my eyes and you know it" was in. She also dared the umpire to "give me a warning after you stole me a point."