The way in which Angelique Kerber beat Serena Williams in the 2016 Australian Open Women’s Final last Saturday to win her first Grand Slam title should be studied and learned in every tennis academy across the United States. Because what Kerber did during the match is not seen very often in the sport of tennis, but is probably the single most powerful concept any tennis player can learn and implement into their game.
So, what’s the secret weapon? Consistency, of course.
Serena Williams is so used to her opponents completely crumbling under the sheer power of her shots that it throws her off guard when one suddenly doesn’t. In the case of Kerber, Serena was forced to play many more balls than she was used to seeing, which slowly but surely whittled down her defenses until Kerber emerged victorious deep in the third set. Watching the highlights of the match, it’s clear that Serena was fighting an uphill battle the entire one hour and 53 minute match; whether she hit an overhead smash or a sharp-angled forehand cross-court, Kerber was always there to put the ball back into play (or, most importantly, always try to).
Some will probably label the strategy Kerber implemented during the match as “pushing,” where one simply returns or lobs the ball back into the court until the other player eventually misses. Kerber did far more than that, however. When Serena was mercilessly running Kerber all over the court, Kerber was extremely patient; she rarely risked hitting a winner from a weak position (as many players are prone to do), instead returning each ball back to Serena and waiting for the next opportunity to take control of the point. When that opportunity would eventually come, Kerber consistently hit her shots around the court and made Serena fight hard to stay in the point.
In other words, she was extremely smart in deciding when to play aggressively and when to play conservatively.
What I’m talking about here probably seems like common sense. But whether it’s in professional tennis, on the junior circuit or at the neighborhood clubs, very few tennis players (to me, at least) even try to do what Kerber did. The popular style of play, especially in American tennis, is to hit big and go for winners on each point, even if that means making tons of unforced errors in the process. True, that can win some people a few matches, but it will get them killed against a player like Kerber who is unfazed by powerful shots and will simply wait for them to inevitably miss.
Another example where consistency was a major factor in a tennis match is Djokovic’s Round of 16 match against Gilles Simon that also took place during the 2016 Australian Open. Djokovic, like Serena, is not used to players pushing him around on the court, which makes him susceptible to an extremely rare player like Simon who bases his entire game off of consistency. Although Djokovic ended up winning the match by matching Simon’s consistency (albeit rather belatedly) it could easily have gone either way. Most importantly, Simon rattled Djokovic by retrieving an inordinate amount of balls back over the net and forcing Djokovic to play outside of his comfort zone for the majority of the match.
The main lesson to be found in both of these examples is that simply getting the ball over the net can go a long way in whittling down another player’s game, even if the ball isn’t always perfectly placed or doesn’t have a lot of power behind it. In an age where hitting super hard and going for winners is all the rage, being a consistent and patient player can be a magical formula for success. There is no better example of this than Angelique Kerber’s brilliant win against the legendary and seemingly unbeatable Serena Williams.
