Samantha Stosur Serena Williams

Stosur was typically philosophical after the match, saying it showed the level she needs to reach. ''It sucks that you have to come up against someone playing like that and you're out of the tournament, but it does show you what you have to try to get to if you want to be up there with them,'' said Stosur. Whatever put the prickle in Williams's sock, it inspired a performance of such power and ferocity that Stosur, whose big first serve and lean physique make her one of the more imposing specimens in the women's game, had not merely faded from television screens by the end of the match. As the match-clinching ace whizzed by, the Australian was hardly apparent on the court either. By then the upbeat pre-match assessment of Stosur's chances of beating Williams - and even advancing to a first grand slam final - had been made absurd. That tour victory in July last year? The bandaging around the right hamstring and below the left knee that made Williams look like an exhibit from the Egyptian collection at the British Museum? Williams's habit of only winning this tournament in odd - or, given her nature, very odd - years? Thoughts all banished the moment Williams cracked a clean winner off a wide-swinging Stosur serve on break point at 2-2 in the first set to gain the lead she would never look like surrendering. Far from a momentous victory, then, the Australian had to settle for a Rosetta Stone Arabic brutal demonstration of what it takes to win a major - in Willliams's case, 11 times and counting. Perhaps having to wait an extra two hours, as the preceding match between Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Verdasco dragged into a fifth set, was not an ideal lead-up for the notoriously flighty Stosur entering one of the most significant matches of her career. However, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi were once asked to wait in the tunnel before walking on to the court for a US Open final because a US television network wanted to stay with an American football match that had gone into overtime. Grand slam champions adapt to the conditions with which they are confronted, they do not have them tailor-made. If Williams's description of Stosur proved somewhat accurate - there was some framing - the Australian was, at least, not completely disheartened. She drew a couple of break points at 0-1 in the second set and could have stemmed the bleeding. But that would have made Williams even more angry. Williams said sorry to the crowd for stomping on the local favourite. Of course, the only apology should come from Seven whose ''live and exclusive'' coverage of the match was a replay of the final game about an hour after it finished. But be assured the dodgy fridge repairmen got the same treatment as Stosur.

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