Serena Williams admits the Australian Open final against Lindsay Davenport has a "retro" feel about it, but insists she will be around for years to come.
"This is what I love to do," said Williams as she prepared to face world number one and top seed Davenport in Melbourne early this morning (BBC 2, highlights, 1.05 p.m.). "I love nothing more than walking out there, hearing my name being announced and the crowd goes wild. I love that feeling. I love being able to perform. I wouldn't give it up right now for anything."
Serena Williams reached just one grand slam final in 2004 - losing to Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon - and her last title came at the All England Club the year before. Davenport has not reached a final since the 2000 US Open, while her last title came earlier the same year here in Australia.
Serena has won nine of the 13 meetings between the pair, but, crucially, Davenport came out on top in the two most recent; the first a 6-1, 6-3 win in Los Angeles and the second in three sets in the season-ending tour championships. But the Williams girl believes her form has improved since those losses.
"I'm playing better than I was in LA. I'm a firm believer that when I play my best tennis and when I serve well and when I hit my balls well and when I'm not making 50 errors, I think everyone would have to agree that it's next to impossible for someone to beat me."
