US Open Tennis 2019 Women's Final: Bianca Andreescu vs. Serena Williams Preview

Serena Williams continues her quest for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title on Saturday against 19-year-old Bianca Andreescu in the women's final of the 2019 U.S. Open in New York.

The six-time champion can equal Margaret Court's record with victory at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and also claim her first major title since giving birth to her daughter in September 2017.

Williams has had the record in sight for some time but has suffered in finals. She has lost the last two at Wimbledon to Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep, respectively, and was defeated by Naomi Osaka in the final of the 2018 U.S. Open.

Yet the eighth seed heads into Saturday's match in dominant form. She has dropped only one set at this year's tournament, against Caty McNally in the second round, and crushed Elina Svitolina in the semi-finals.

Williams will have to beat Canada's Andreescu to write her name into the history books. The teenager is in the main draw at the U.S. Open for the first time in her career and is in superb form.

The 15th seed has already claimed titles at Indian Wells and Toronto this season, overcoming Williams in the final of the Rogers Cup in August when the American was forced to withdraw in the first set due to injury.

Final Preview

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Williams is widely regarded as being the greatest female player ever to grace the game and could set more records with victory on Saturday.

Another win in New York would see her overtake Chris Evert's record of six U.S. Open titles and her landmark of 101 wins at the tournament:

Williams will need to put aside memories of last year's final when she was beaten by Osaka in a controversial clash. The American accused umpire Carlos Ramos of being a "thief" on her way to a shock defeat.

BBC 5 Live Sport offered a neat summary of the final:

Yet Williams has looked far more composed at this year's tournament. She has rarely been troubled on her way to the final, easing past fellow seeds Petra Martic, Qiang Wang and Svitolina in straight sets.

WTA Insider highlighted her dominance on serve:

The 37-year-old has said she is not thinking about breaking records ahead of Saturday's final with Andreescu, per James Olley at the Evening Standard.

"I don't think about the numbers, I just come out here and do as well as I can," he said. "I've been here for 20 years—and I'm still here."

Williams has shown no signs of the injury problems that have troubled her in 2019 and has been at her powerful, clinical best in New York, meaning it will take something special to stop her from winning on Saturday.

Yet Andreescu may have forgotten what it feels like to taste defeat on a tennis court. She has not been beaten in a completed match since losing to Sofia Kenin in Mexico in February.

The teenager also boasts a perfect record against the game's highest-ranked players. She has not lost to a top-10 player in seven matches and can make history of her own if she lands a maiden Grand Slam:

Saturday's match is also notable for having the biggest age gap between two women finalists at a major in the Open Era, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Andreescu had not even been born when Williams landed her first title in New York:

The underdog status will suit Andreescu, who has already seen off former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki, Belgium's Elise Mertens and 13th seed Belinda Bencic on her way to the final.

Andreescu has enjoyed a phenomenal rise this season and has talked about her disbelief at reaching the final, per Jonathan Jurejko at BBC Sport.

"If someone told me a year ago I would be in the US Open final this year, I'd tell them they were crazy," she said. "It's just surreal. I really don't know what to say. It's a dream come true playing against Serena in the final of the U.S. Open. It's crazy."

The youngster now faces the toughest test of all against the former champion, and while there is no doubting her quality, it would be a shock if Williams were not celebrating another major title on Saturday.