How the West was Won: Serena Wins Stanford for First Title in Comeback!

Serena Williams capped off a strong week of tennis by capturing the Bank of the West Classic title, her first since Wimbledon 2010 and her first WTA tour title since Charleston in 2008. She even joked that it felt like she hadn't won a tour event "since the summer of '52". But there was no joke when it came to digging deep in her game to play her best when needed. And did she ever need it!

Marion Bartoli came out for the final full of confidence, shots blazing from both of her two-handed wings. There was no easing into this match for Marion. She was sharp and strong from the outset, hitting deep and with pace. The much-acclaimed Serena serve was coming back into play time and again, making Serena hit shots that she wasn't expecting she would need to hit. Marion also ran down many shots that had been winners in Serena's previous matches against Maria and Sabine.

Her "special" service motion, as she said it has been called (during her post-match press conference -- and FYI: it is "special"), was strong from the outset. Her first serve percentage started high and her placement kept Serena off-balance. MPH were good as well and there were even a couple of aces thrown in for extra measure.

Watching the first few games left many of us in the media feeling uneasy. I was thinking that we could potentially see Serena beaten in straight sets. THAT is how good Marion was serving/hitting the ball. Serena was broken in the third game to fall back 1-2, and struggled from that point on with Marion's unexpected aggression.

Eventually, the Serena we have all come to know (and expect) showed up with her back up against the wall at 2-4, and stepped up with big babe hitting in the longer rallies. Though Marion had pushed Serena to the brink, feasting on Serena's higher bouncing topspin forehands, Serena won this crucial game from 30-all with an ace and crosscourt forehand winner.

That game was crucial on two fronts. The first and most obvious was that it kept Serena from falling behind two breaks. It's tough for even Serena to come back from two breaks down in a set, and tough to come back from a set down to beat a confident opponent. The second front was unknown to most of us in the stands: a particularly well-struck serve from Serena had jammed Marion's racquet grip into her hand with such force that she likely had a bone bruise.

Marion, unable to proper grip her racquet, immediately gave up the break for 4-all with a double fault on game point. But Serena returned the favor by starting the next game with two double faults of her own and, eventually giving back the break to go down 4-5. Marion requested her coach to the surprise of many. She explained later that her father knew something was wrong and she wanted to let him know about her hand.

The plucky Frenchwoman continued playing, but the outcome was becoming clear as Serena was finding her range and building in confidence by the moment. Marion quickly went down love-40 to give Serena 3 break chances. She only needed one as she took the break in a long rally that ended with Marion netting the ball from a deep backhand slice. Serena gets another difficult hold on the sunny side of the court with an out wide serve followed by a forehand down the line.

A shanked backhand by Marion hands the set to Serena, and the trainer is called. There is only discussion and no taping -- Marion soldiers on. As the errors and double faults mount while Serena continues striking ferocious winners, it is only a matter of time before we get to match point. Marion has held bravely at 5-1 to avert the bagel, but Serena closes out serve for a comprehensive 7-5, 6-1 victory.

There were no excuses from Marion in the press conference as she gave all due credit to Serena. She knew it was going to be a tougher match than their 4th round at Wimbledon. It certainly was!

The well-deserved "legend of Serena" continues with her 38th title win at Stanford. Watch out women of the WTA, Serena is back!