LONDON -- To hear Serena Williams and her coach tell it, the process of getting her ready to win Wimbledon for a record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title began with a series of chats over the phone not long after her loss in the French Open final. http:///...nd-canadiens-jersey/.That setback in Paris marked the third consecutive major tournament that Williams left without the trophy, which to any other tennis player would not be a big deal but to the 34-year-old American represented a real drought.So she and Patrick Mouratoglou touched base repeatedly to hash it all out.I was just talking through things, and how I was disappointed that I lost the French, and what I needed to do, to do better at Wimbledon. We were strategizing a lot, Williams told a small group of reporters in her last of many interviews Saturday night, about 7 hours after beating Angelique Kerber 7-5, 6-3 for the championship at the All England Club.It wasnt one conversation, Williams said. We talked for at least five -- so many times. Almost every day. Just to try to feel what I needed to do and what was going to be done.At some point during that period, Williams sent a text message to Mouratoglou that he found full of meaning.He said he recognized that I was different and I was back to who I am, usually, Williams said. And I was like, `What does that mean? He just said that he felt I was different when I sent that text. He was very encouraged by it, and we were able to build on it.Recalled Mouratoglou on Saturday: I felt like the Serena I know was back. ... Back to thinking the way she thinks.That was important, he knew, because it wasnt as if she had forgotten how to play, of course, or allowed her skills to erode, even if she already was the oldest woman to be ranked No. 1 and the oldest to win a major title.He realized he hadnt quite seen the same person ever since Williams bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam in 2015 ended with a loss to Roberta Vinci in the U.S. Open semifinals, one of the biggest surprises in tennis history.After that came defeats for Williams in two Grand Slam finals, against Kerber at the Australian Open, then against Garbine Muguruza at Roland Garros.Thinking back to what happened in New York, Mouratoglou said: Either she or I -- we both -- didnt know she was that hurt. I think it took a lot of time. She was not herself.During the past two weeks at Wimbledon, Williams certainly did appear to be back to possessing the confident, all-powerful presence the world is accustomed to seeing and hearing -- on and off the court.One day, I woke up and I just felt different, Williams said, referring to those days after the French Open. I felt like: I can do better. I can do this. Not only can I do this, Im going to do this, and theres nothing in this world thats going to stop me.That was evident in her play, to be sure, particularly in that spectacular serve, which produced 13 aces at up to a tournament-leading 124 mph against Kerber.And it was evident in her words, most succinctly when a reporter asked after the semifinals what Williams makes of it when others refer to her as one of historys greatest female athletes.She replied: I prefer the word, one of the greatest `athletes of all time.Well put.---AP Sports Writer Stephen Wilson contributed to this report.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrichhttp:///...eu-canadiens-jersey/ . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. http:///...ur-canadiens-jersey/ .R. Smith realized how easily basketball can be taken from him, and he wasnt going to take his place in the NBA for granted anymore. http:///...uk-canadiens-jersey/ .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play.CLEVELAND -- Cy Young himself wouldnt want to mess with the Indians right now. Justin Masterson struck out a season-high 11 in seven shutout innings and Michael Brantley hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs off Felix Hernandez as Cleveland toppled yet another former Cy Young Award winner on Sunday with a 6-0 victory over the Seattle Mariners. Brantley connected in the second inning off Hernandez (5-3), who failed to go at least six innings for the first time this season. The Indians, who improved to 17-4 since April 28, are 7-1 this season against Cy Young recipients. Theyve knocked off Hernandez, R.A. Dickey, David Price, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Bartolo Colon and Justin Verlander. The Indians are taking pride in knocking off trophy-winning pitchers. "We just take it as a challenge," Indians first baseman Nick Swisher said. "Weve got that scrappy-type and gritty-type of team. It may not always be pretty, man, but somehow were going to find a way to get it done. We just love coming to the ballpark right now. "Things are rocking," Swisher said. Before the game, Brantley said the Indians talked about taking down another trophy-winning pitcher. "Were loose and were not holding nothing back," Brantley said. "Everybody has smiles on their faces. We just want to make sure we enjoy this. Were playing great baseball right now and we just want to keep it up." Staked to an early lead, Masterson (7-2) was dominant for the second straight start. He allowed three singles, easily outdueled Hernandez and ran his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 19. He shut out the New York Yankees 1-0 on four hits in his previous outing. "From the very first pitch of the game he came out firing," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "He was not only firing, but he was pitching. He was using both sides of the plate. He was using a two-seamer, four-seamer, throwing breaking balls to both sides of the plate. He kept going up, down, in, out. He worked ahead." The AL Central-leading Indians are a baseball-best 20-7 since April 20. "Weve got a good thing going in here," Swisher said. "Weve got a lot of confident, excited guys and were going out and proving that." Following walkoff wins in the first two games of the series, Cleveland took the drama out of this one early, building a 5-0 lead after two innings against Hernandez. The 2010 Cy Young winner, who left his previous start after six innings with back stiffness, came in with the leagues lowest ERA (1.53) but it rose to 2.07 after he gave up six runs and eight hits in five innings. Hernandez struck out eight, including the final three batters, but he was wasnt on his game -- and neither were the Mariners. Seattle was only charged with one error, but the Mariners made several mental mistakes that helped the Indians. http:///...aw-canadiens-jersey/. "Youre going to have games like that when a couple of things happen and you make a couple of mistakes," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. "Thats what happened to us. It was one of those days for Felix and one of those days for us." Its not like Masterson needed much help. The big right-hander overpowered the Mariners, who couldnt catch up to his 97 mph fastball and only had two runners reach second base against him. The Indians were hoping Masterson could develop into their ace, and so far this season hes been the dependable front-of-the-rotation starter they desperately needed. "His stuff is dominant," Francona said. "Hes been consistent, but consistent at a level with his velocity, breaking ball, ability to hold runners. Hes just done everything." Pitching with a six-run lead, he got stronger as the game progressed. He struck out five of the last six batters he faced and fanned seven in the last three innings. Last season was a struggle for Masterson, who went 11-15 with a 4.93 ERA. So whats he doing better? "Everything," he said, laughing. Brantleys three-run homer with two outs in the second gave the Indians a 5-0 lead over Hernandez. The right-hander, who needed 35 pitches to get through the first, retired the first two hitters on groundouts before Michael Bourn singled and went to third on Jason Kipnis base hit to centre. Brantley then drove an 0-1 pitch into the Indians bullpen in centre for just his second homer. It was a stunning development against Hernandez, who came in having allowed just four earned runs in 44 innings over his past six starts. In the eight starts against the Indians, the former Cy Young winners have a collective 8.21 ERA. A fundamental gaffe by Hernandez allowed the Indians to add a run in the fourth. With Mike Aviles at second after a double, Drew Stubbs topped a ball into the dirt that catcher Jesus Montero fielded in front of the plate and threw to first for the out. Aviles never slowed coming around third and scored easily because Montero got caught up the line and Hernandez failed to cover home. "Thats just beautiful right there," Masterson said. "Those are the type of things you want to see, and thats what defines this team and makes it so special." NOTES: Clevelands starters are 13-4 in the past 21 games. ... The Indians are 6-0-4 in their last 10 series. ... White Sox RHP Jake Peavy is the only former Cy Young winner to beat the Indians this season. ... Masterson is the fifth starter to record double-digit strikeouts against the Mariners in 2013. ... The Indians will try to complete the four-game sweep on Monday as the teams conclude their wrap-around series with a matinee. ... The Indians are 9-1 against the AL West. ... Cleveland has seven shutouts, its most through 42 games since 2008. Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
