Tennis: Williams back from the brink

Venus Williams scored an epic win over Caroline Wozniacki. Photo / Getty

Venus Williams has accumulated almost 100 trophies in her career, but has only three displayed in her bedroom.

Two are from Wimbledon and one is the runners-up trophy from last year's ASB Classic.

That will be switched now with a bigger version but the pride of place is symbolic of how she feels about this event - which saw her roll back the years yesterday to claim a gripping 2-6 6-3 6-3 over top seed Caroline Wozniacki.

"I love it here," said Williams. "Tennis feels different here than most places. Tennis can be very stressful but when you come here you feel all the more at ease. I waited until I was 33 to come to New Zealand and that was one of the biggest mistakes of my life."

Like last year, the ASB Classic got the final it deserved. Williams was in real trouble midway through the match, before producing some vintage tennis to claim her 46th career singles title. It means Wozniacki is still yet to beat Williams (0-6) and it was the American's first title in almost a year.

Williams hadn't lost a set all week - hadn't even came close - but that all changed within 30 minutes yesterday. She struggled from the start and looked out of sorts.

It didn't help that her opponent prowls the baseline like a panther. Wozniacki came up with some of the best retrievals seen on these courts since Michael Chang in 2001. At one point Williams thought she was admiring a winner when the ball came sailing back as the Dane chased down another lost cause.

Williams was broken twice as Wozniacki won the first set 6-2. When the American was broken again to begin the second set, the omens were not good. Fans were looking at the biggest anti-climax in Auckland since the 2003 America's Cup finals.

But Williams found a way back.

Wozniacki briefly took her foot off the pedal and Williams finally secured a break and a foothold in the match.

"I should have kept it there," reflected Wozniacki. "I should have kept that break. My serve went down a little bit and she came back."

Williams also realised the significance of that break.

"In tennis, the best part is there is never a clock," she said. "I felt like I could only play better. After that, the game started rolling and she was a little bit frustrated."

As Williams stepped up, Wozniacki began to make some mistakes, also struggling with the blustery conditions. Williams came up with some monster serves, regularly surpassing 190km/h, and had the Dane on the back foot.

The third set was just what you expect in a final; serious quality, intense drama, high tension. And some unbelievable tennis.

One player would produce the shot of the day, before the other would surpass it a few points later. Wozniacki, who had admired the corporate box dining earlier in the week, was almost sitting among them after one wickedly-angled Williams forehand. That shot secured a crucial break, putting Williams up 2-1.

The rest of the set was a battle of wits - Williams hanging on physically, Wozniacki hanging on mentally.

Williams had chances for another break - which would have buried the Dane - but didn't take them. But she finally converted her fourth match point to win the coveted title.