Serena Williams said she didn’t think she’d be nervous for her first Indian Wells final since 2001. The chances that she would be overwhelmed trying to win the tournament that she had boycotted for 14 years were, in her mind, “like zero.”
In a pre-match interview for ESPN, her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, echoed her optimism.
“She’s really pumped up,” the Frenchman said with a confident smile.
It was a final, after all, where Serena always excels, and she knew she needed to be ready for a high-quality, high-intensity opponent in Victoria Azarenka.
It took about 30 seconds for Mouratoglou’s smile to disappear, and only slightly longer for Serena to be broken in her opening service game. Flat-footed and uncertain, she double faulted twice and was broken at love. She was, as she was quickly finding out, a little more anxious than she imagined.
“When I walked out there,” Serena said, “I was like, ‘Oh man, I’m really nervous’.”