Serena, Zimbabweans Win, Roddick Hammer-Fest Continues

Serena suffered an injury to one of her ribs in the opening set after stretching for a shot.

"At one point I reached for a backhand and I think it tweaked my back out, one of my ribs out. For the next few games I was completely out of it. I had to adjust," Serena said. "Then I finally decided, 'Okay, why don't you call for the trainer and see if she can put it back in place.' She did, and everything worked out."

In the third set Serena made only three unforced errors, and upped her ace count with 80 percent of her first serves hitting their mark.

"She raised her game," Davenport said. "She started serving really well and hard. You know, I think at the end, I mean, I definitely was a little bit I think just overall a little bit fatigued. But, you know, she took advantage when she had the opportunity and kept going."

The roof on Rod Laver Arena was closed during the match due to rain earlier in the day. Serena delivered 12 aces to Davenport's seven, with the world No. 1 converting on only two of eight break point chances.

It was almost certainly the last Australian Open for Davenport, who had planned to retire at the end of 2004 until a combination of her sterling play and injuries to other top players saw her finish the year No. 1.

In the Monday WTA Tour Rankings, Serena will become the first player to rise from outside the Top 5 to No. 2.

Zimbabwean Pair Black-Ullyett Beat Bryans to Win Australian Open Doubles

Zimbabwe's Wayne Black and Kevin Ullyett defeated Americans Bob and Mike Bryan 6-4, 6-4 Saturday to win the Australian Open doubles title, their second slam after the 2001 US Open.

It was the Bryan's fourth appearance in a slam final and their second in Melbourne after finishing runners-up last year, bringing their record in slam finals to 1-4, with their only win in 2003 at the French Open.

Black and Ullyett now lead the rivalry with six wins in their nine meetings.

"You got to be on top of everything to beat them pretty much," Black said. "They bring so much energy to the court, and if we can just rival that energy with them, it makes for great encounters."

The Bryans could not convert on either of their break opportunities during the match, and threw in six double faults between them.

Black and Ullyett dedicated the win to their fathers, who both died of cancer.

Scheduled for Sunday is the mixed doubles final between unseeded Aussies Scott Draper/Samantha Stosur and the No. 4-seeded Zimbabwe/South African pairing of Ullyett/Liezel Huber (d. Max "The Beast" Mirnyi/Martina Navratilova in the semis), and the men's singles final of (3) Lleyton Hewitt vs. (4) Marat Safin (career head-to-head 5-5, with the Russian winning their last meeting at the Masters Series-Paris).

"Lleyton is really good at what he does," said Safin, who will try and overpower Hewitt in the final. "He tries to put you in -- he tries to make you play the same game he wants you to play. And it just doesn't suit me. I have to go with my tactics, you know, just go for it sometimes, risk it, and be aggressive -- be really aggressive."

TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
Andy Roddick on taking the long break between the third and fourth set against Lleyton Hewitt: "I was changing my clothes. Then the referee came and started getting on me about changing my clothes, so that was fun. You know, asked him if he wanted to tie one shoe for me, and I could tie the other one, we could just save time. I guess that wasn't a good idea. But, no, I mean, I was just changing my clothes. I told the chair umpire I was going to." You get the picture that A-Rod has difficulty dealing with emotionally-charged situations? Remember the spontaneous laps of the tunnels under Arthur Ashe Stadium after being upset by Joachim "The Jackhammer" Johansson at the US Open?...Why Serena wasn't surprised that Marat Safin beat Roger Federer -- genetics: "Safin's taller than Federer. I always thought Safin was a great player and I've always wondered why he didn't win more Slams. But it doesn't necessarily surprise me because Safin is very tall and very strong and he has the ability I think to be the best."...Very entertaining to see ESPN, after airing the tape of the Lleyton Hewitt-Andy Roddick match Friday afternoon, stepping up with the broadcast of the World Juggling Federation Championships. We're not joking...No Aussie has appeared in the Australian Open final since Pat Cash, who lost to Stefan Edberg in 1987 and Mats Wilander in 1988...Right after Lleyton Hewitt's win over Andy Roddick, the bookie odds emerged at Safin 1.61 and Hewitt 2.25 for the final...Lleyton Hewitt on what he would be doing the day before the Australian Open men's final: "Probably a 10K run, gym session. I won't be watching the women's final, that's for sure."...Aussie player Scott Draper shot a 7-over 79 Friday morning in the first round of the Victorian Open in Melbourne, 13 shots behind the leaders. Draper and countrywoman Sam Stosur advanced to the Aussie Open mixed doubles final...After a little under a month of play on the men's tour, let's check in with the numerous proponents of Roger Federer winning the calendar grand slam -- how is that going? Keep us posted...From the Australian Heard Sun: "When Andy Roddick left court for a toilet break at the end of the third set, he took at least seven minutes to return to the battlefield. Maybe it crossed his mind to keep walking, right through the locker-room, out the front doors and into a courtesy car...When the Australian rifled a backhand crosscourt past the advancing Roddick to seal the third set, the American generously applauded at the net. Typically, Hewitt didn't notice. He was bent over behind the baseline executing his now familiar start-the-lawnmower routine, the signal 'I'm coming to mow you down.' No wonder Roddick sought solace in the locker-room. There was certainly nowhere to hide on centre court."...Jennifer Capriati underwent successful arthroscopic surgery Friday to repair a torn labrum in her right shoulder, with no immediate timetable for the 28-year-old's return to the tour...Marat Safin explaining his necklaces to reporters: "This one is from a fan. Second one is from the Lord of the Rings. The third one is the Koran, the Muslim sign."...ESPN commentator and U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe on his boy Andy Roddick's mental collapse against Lleyton Hewitt: "This was a huge match. Going in, we knew at some point his mental toughness would be tested by Hewitt or the crowd. Roddick didn't handle it well. He double-faulted twice in a row. He let Hewitt back in and let the crowd get in. He had chances to win the set in the tiebreak, but they slipped away. Roddick forgot what was working for him. He started to rush and go for shots that weren't there. There was no reason for him to do that. If he'd stuck with his guns off the ground and continued with his variety, he would have been fine. I was disappointed with the way he competed in the fourth set. He mentally lost it and let Hewitt run away with it."