Controlled Aggression
Justine Henin surprised some people with her victory over Serena Williams in the quarterfinals of the 2007 U.S. Open. Serena Williams’ serve helped her stay in the first set and her fastest first serve was clocked at 124 MPH compared to Henin’s at 117 MPH. However, one of the most surprising statistics from the match was the average service speeds for both the first and second serve. Henin’s average first serve speed was 105 MPH compared
to only 106 MPH for Serena. More surprisingly, Henin’s average second serve speed was 90 MPH compared to 85 MPH for Serena Williams. In the end, it was Henin’s aggressive play from the baseline and net which won the match for her. Notably, Serena only won 36% of her 14 net approaches compared to 79% for Henin. For the match, Henin had more winners than unforced errors and Serena the reverse. Serena Williams may seem the more powerful player, but execution matters as much, and sometimes more, than pace.
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