Wimbledon 2015 Women's Final: Serena Williams vs. Garbine Muguruza Preview

World No. 1 Serena Williams will win her sixth Wimbledon singles title on Saturday if she defeats Spain's Garbine Muguruza in the final on Centre Court at SW19.

A victory on the grass would also secure the second Serena Slam of her career—holding all four major titles at the same time—and just a U.S. Open win away from a maiden calendar Grand Slam.

She is the heavy favourite to beat Muguruza, and rightly so. The American has been impeccable in 2015, and at this year's Wimbledon, she has lost only two sets.

Year	Event	Stage	Result
2013	Australian Open	Second Round	Williams 6-2, 6-0
2014	French Open	Second Round	Muguruza 6-2, 6-2
2015	Australian Open	Last 16	Williams 2-6, 6-3, 6-2

Her experience is vast—Serena is going for the 21st Grand Slam of her career—especially compared to that of her opponent, who is appearing in her first Grand Slam final.

However, 21-year-old Muguruza will certainly not be blown away, and she has history against her legendary opponent.

She condemned Williams to her heaviest defeat at a Grand Slam in the second round of last year's French Open, winning 6-2, 6-2 in 64 minutes. 

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

When the pair met again at the last-16 stage of this year's Australian Open, Serena won in three sets, Muguruza pushing her all the way.

Only the pair's first meeting, at the 2013 Australian Open, when Muguruza was 19, was a lopsided Williams win—the American won 6-2, 6-0.

The No. 20 seed, Muguruza is guaranteed to debut in the top 10 of the world rankings regardless of the outcome of Saturday's final. She has toppled some serious heavyweights on her way to the final, defeating Angelique Kerber, world No. 5 Caroline Wozniacki and 2012 Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwanska in the semis.

Muguruza has the height, athleticism, groundstrokes—she has an excellent backhand—and chutzpah to seriously challenge Williams in Saturday's final.

However, it is hard to look beyond a Serena victory. At 33, a Wimbledon victory this year would make her the oldest female winner of a major in the Open Era.

She is playing some of the best tennis of her career, and unfortunately for Muguruza, Williams, by her own admission, has improved since her defeat to the Spaniard at Roland Garros last year, per Sports Illustrated's Courtney Nguyen: "It was an eye‑opening loss for me. Some losses you're angry about, and some losses you learn from. That loss I think I learned the most from in a long time. I got so much better after that loss."

Williams has not had it all her own way at this year's tournament. She was pushed all the way by Britain's Heather Watson in the third round and Victoria Azarenka also took her to three sets in a terrific quarter-final match.

She has risen to every challenge that has been put to her, and comes into the final off the back of a convincing last-four victory over Maria Sharapova. 

Muguruza is a huge talent and a very exciting player. But as noted by 2013 Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, she may have to wait a little longer for her maiden Grand Slam victory, per BBC Tennis:

Serena seems to be on a path to history. The completion of the calendar Grand Slam in 2015 would move her onto 22 career wins at major tournaments, tied with Steffi Graf's record.

For many, Serena is the greatest female tennis player of all time. She is unparalleled in the modern game. That is the challenge facing Muguruza.

The Spaniard will make it tough for Williams, but the world No. 1 thrives under such pressure and should claim a sixth singles title on Wimbledon's famous Centre Court on Saturday.