Jakub Mensik, Miami champion, was going to pull out of the tournament an hour before his first match

A whole generation of tennis fans may have grown up not knowing that Serena Williams ever had a legitimate rival other than her sister. That person was Justine Henin, and for most of the 2000s these two No. 1s made for a contrast worthy of Borg-McEnroe and Federer-Nadal. Williams was the strong, powerful American with the two-handed backhand; Henin was the small, nimble European with the elegantly wicked one-hander. Together they battled and inspired each other over 14 often hard-fought matches; Serena won eight, Justine six.

Their 2007 Miami final was among the most highly-anticipated of those meetings. It was just the second time they had played since their controversial semifinal at Roland Garros in 2003. It also came at a moment when both were at the peaks of their powers. Serena had just won her first major title in two years, at the Australian Open. Henin would soon win her third straight title in Paris, and claim the No. 1 ranking. In Miami, Serena was seeded just 13th, but she showed she could be as dominant as ever when she steamrolled top seed Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-1 in the round of 16.

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The fans at Crandon Park were lucky to have witnessed this one.

But that’s not how she looked to start this final. In fact, Serena didn’t look like herself until she was one point from defeat. Henin bageled her in 26 minutes in the first set, went up a quick break in the second, and twice reached match point while serving at 5-4.

If you’re looking for a time-capsule example of Serena’s famous ability to walk to the edge of a cliff without falling off, this match fits the bill. Suddenly making the shots she’d been missing, suddenly dictating rather than reacting, she saved those match points, won the next six games, and clinched the fifth of her eight Miami Open titles with a trademark unreturnable serve.

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Serena didn’t look like herself until she was one point from defeat. “I just feel like when I get down, a part of me plays better.”

“I just feel like when I get down, a part of me plays better,” Serena said, in an understatement. “And I think all champions have that. When I play well, there aren’t many players who can beat me.”

That would be even more true in 2017 than it was in 2007, in part because Henin would no longer be around to push her to the edge.

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