Serena Williams says the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open will be critical to restoring her clay court form in the build up to the French Open later this month. The world No.2, who didn’t win a match in Marbella or Rome, said she’s felt confident during the clay court swing but acknowledged that confidence hadn’t translated into results so far. “I feel good going into this tournament but then I felt good going into Rome so I hope to do a little better here than I did there,” said Williams. “I’m happy to be here and excited to get my first win on a clay court this season.“I’ve had a heavy schedule but I wanted to try to play some clay court events and I absolutely love Spain,” she said.
Williams complimented the tournament’s organization saying, “it is a new tournament, nobody has played here before and everyone is doing the best they can do,” and said that the playing conditions suited her. “Coming from the USA I am excited about the bounce here because in Florida the courts are very different, this is a step up for me here.”
The Williams sisters currently hold three of the four Grand Slam trophies and Serena said that while she and Venus had not yet looked as far forward as the French Open, they would be keen to capture the one Major trophy currently missing from their collection. “We have not talked about Paris but obviously we want to do well there and it would be great to extend our streak,” Serena said. Seeded No.2, Williams first round opponent is Italian Francesca Schiavone whom she has beaten in four of their five career meetings, most recently last year on clay in Berlin.
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