Full Court Press

Serena Williams is chasing Grand Slam history at age 34. And she just might catch it at this U.S. Open. by BILL SAPORITO.

- Bill Saporito

THERE ARE TIMES WHEN YOU’RE WATCHING SERENA WILLIAMS PLAY SO ridiculously well that you just want to turn away. Not from her, but from the spectacle of Serena dismantling another hopelessly overmatched professional in the early rounds of a tournament. There’s nothing malevolent about her performance; she’s always graceful in victory, but there’s no off switch to her athleticism. When Serena plays, Serena really wants to win. “Everyone who knows me knows that I love to win, especially on the big stages,” she said after her 44-minute, first-round squashing of Magdalena Rybarikova at this year’s French Open.

How badly does Serena Williams want to win? Badder than you do, even if you’re ranked 77th and desperate, and also badder than the other top-ranked women she finished off to win 21 Grand Slam tournaments over her 20-year career. Serena’s quest for more of them has not been diminished by a life in full celebrity: Selling her clothing line on HSN, stepping out with Drake, doing charitable work, being a social activist, becoming an artist and basking in the admiration of everyone from Martha Stewart and Sheryl Sandberg to J.K. Rowling and President and Mrs. Obama.

At 34, she has two more opportunities this year in her quest to catch Steffi Graf’s record of 22 Grand Slam titles in the Open Era. She’s come close already, losing in the finals of the Australian Open to Angelique Kerber and in the French to rising Spanish star Garbiñe Muguruza—a player very much in her mold. When “Mugu” lobbed over her for the winning point, Serena applauded and then vowed to press on. “In Australia, Ann Kerber made 16 errors in three sets, so what do you do in that situation?” Serena said after the French final. “And today Garbiñe played unbelievable. The only thing I can do is keep trying.”