Belgium's Justine Henin came to New York in 2007 in sparkling form. She had won Roland Garros for the third year in a row and had been a semifinalist at Wimbledon.
The perspicacious Henin was the clear favorite to capture the US Open crown, but the draw dictated that she would need to deal with some very tough opposition if she wanted to confirm her status as the best player in the world of women's tennis.
Consider for just a moment the task for Henin as she moved through that arduous draw: beat two time Open victor Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, upend three time champion Venus Williams in the penultimate round, and oust 2004 winner Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final round.
To say that this would be no mean feat is putting it mildly, but Henin realized at this stage of her career that no one, not even the renowned Williams sisters, could beat her if she was at her best.
No one was going to get in Henin's way this year, including Maria Sharapova, who stopped the Belgian with a dazzling performance the previous year in the final.
Even before Henin defeated Serena Williams, she handled Dinara Safina – a future world No. 1 – in a straight set, round of 16 contest. Next she held back No. 8 seed Serena 7-6 (3), 6-1. The pattern against No. 12 seed Venus was strikingly similar: Henin won 7-6 (2), 6-4. The plucky Belgian saved her best for last, eliminating Kuznetsova 6-1, 6-3.
The night of the final, I wrote for the official US Open draw sheet, "Henin was enterprising, assertive and concentrated as she accounted for the 2004 US Open victor, setting the agenda from beginning to end with a versatile game plan featuring good offense and strong defense from the back of the court, timely advances to the net (she won 13 of 16 points when she approached) and her typically impeccable court sense.The 25-year-old Belgian became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2002 to win the US Open without conceding a set."
It was arguably the most impressive of the seven major championship titles Henin collected in her enviable career. She knocked out a cavalcade of prodigious performers.
She lifted her game steadily down the stretch. She demonstrated that her all court style was a joy to watch. Henin's majestic one-handed backhand was fully on display over the fortnight at Flushing Meadows. Her point construction from the backcourt was irresistibly good. Her match playing acumen was a defining factor in her success.
As Henin described her display against Kuznetsova, "I played very well on the important points and took control from the beginning of the match. I never stopped being aggressive and I took the opportunities on her serve. I just kept the intensity all the time and I was there in the rallies. I didn't give her a lot of free points".
Not giving much away? Making the most of her opportunities? Playing percentage tennis? That was the story of Justine Henin's career.
