Sri Lanka Sports News | Online edition of Daily News

Safina blames stage fright for Open wipe-out

Andrew Dent

Australian Open finalist Dinara Safina on Saturday explained her embarrassing 6-0, 6-3 hammering by Serena Williams as a bad case of stage fright.

Safina said that despite having no nerves before her second Grand Slam final, she froze when she got on court.

"I was feeling good, you know," Safina said. "But then once you step on the court, it's a different situation.

Safina, who was also playing for the number one ranking, also lost last year's French Open final to Ana Ivanovic.

She started disastrously, serving three double faults in her opening service game, and things hardly improved throughout one of the most lopsided finals in Australian Open history.

"It was the first time for me to play not only for a Grand Slam, but also for the number one spot," she said.

"I've never been through this situation and she has already. So she has been in this situation many more times. I would say she was much more experienced than I was today stepping on the court."

Safina said she knew she was in trouble when her serve deserted her, and the match was racing away at such a pace she didn't have time to make adjustments.

"Even like when I lost the first set, I was like, 'OK come on,'" she said.

"I tried, but my serve was letting me down. "After (the first set) I held it for two times, but just during the match I was not giving her any trouble with my serve. "Normally my serve is my weapon, so playing without all my weapons, it's tough against her.

"I wouldn't say that I was negative on the court. I was trying to stay positive and I was trying to do something, I just didn't had enough time to do it. It just happened too fast."

Safina said Williams had made sure that once she began to struggle, there was no easing off.

"She played exactly the way she had to play and she was much more aggressive and she was just taking time away from me," Safina said. "She didn't let me come into the match."