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NEW YORK -- It was on a US Open practice court where, if you were especially intuitive, there were signs last year that Serena Williams was headed for an unhappy ending to her quest of completing the seventh calendar-year Grand Slam in the history of the game.It wasnt necessarily what she did that day, tossing and serving for well over an hour -- first from the deuce court, then from the ad and over to a different court for more of the same.It was more of what drove her there and the purposefulness with which she marched over directly after her match. Williams would later admit to being nervous during her eventual second-round victory against the 110th-ranked player in the world, a match in which she would squeak out a first-set tiebreaker 7-5, after committing eight double faults and 26 unforced errors in the opening set.She would close the match out 6-3 in the second; the match point was not accompanied by anything close to the shrieks heard that afternoon but rather utter silence, a disgusted look and an eye roll. She later characterized it as not one of my happiest moments.At that point, Williams was already tired of the questions and seemingly tired of the grind. Tired of being tired. She even all but demanded that any inquiries with the words Grand Slam in them cease. And when she lost in a semifinal shocker to Roberta Vinci, the 43rd-ranked player in the world playing her first career Slam semi, Serena blew through a four-minute news conference and left the grounds.You could hardly blame her. But back in the second round here Thursday against 27-year-old American Vania King, Williams mood was decidedly different.I think Im more relaxed, for sure, Williams said this earlier this week.While not exactly operating under the proverbial radar, Serena is trying to win just her second Slam in a row after prevailing at Wimbledon and only trying to surpass Steffi Grafs record of 22 career majors.And while King is an 87th-ranked wildcard who succumbed to Serena in their only previous meeting, 6-1, 6-0 in 56 minutes in the 2014 US Open, you suspect Williams opponent, as always, has very little to do with the outcome.While Serena is still dealing with a shoulder issue that had her going for placement rather than speed on her serves in her 6-3, 6-3 first-round win over Ekaterina Makarova, there is considerably less emotional weight on both shoulders this year.In 2015, Williams played 17 three-setters going into the Open in 10 tournaments, plus two rounds of Fed Cup; she won 16 of those three-set matches. This year, there have been five three-setters in seven tournaments, including the Olympics. She lost that third-round encounter to 20th-ranked Elina Svitolina in straight sets on Aug. 9, her last match before New York.Even with the shoulder concerns, Williams was asked, is this US Open already a more pleasant experience?I was going for something that no one has done in a really long time, she said of last year. Yeah, it didnt end wonderful for me or the way I wanted it to end. But it was all I could do. Thats all I could do.While the three-set victories were a testament to her competitive toughness, the off-court battle turned out to be a considerably tougher one. After the 2015 Open, she cited a broken heart from her loss to Vinci in addition to other injuries and subsequently announced she was withdrawing from three tournaments, including the WTA Finals.Williams coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, said the motivation just wasnt there, and it was the only sensible decision. And this year, while Serena, who is weeks short of her 35th birthday, said she would have preferred to play more coming into the final Grand Slam of the year, she is trying to be optimistic.There is nothing we can do about it, she said. You just have to make the best of every single opportunity. Thats all I can do now.Usually, thats more than enough. Cheap Nike Huarache China . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday. Cheap Nike Huarache Wholesale . Walcott is available for Saturdays home match against Southampton as Arsenal looks to extend its two-point lead at the top of the Premier League. The Gunners are currently the second highest scorers in the league but Wenger insists Walcott will add something extra to his team. http://www.cheapairhuarache.com/ . Then the Pacers gave Oladipo and his Orlando teammates the cold shoulder. Paul Georges buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter spurred a 21-4 run, finally sending Indiana past the Magic 97-87 in a tougher-than-expected opening night matchup. Cheap Nike Huarache Shoes For Sale . -- The St. Johns IceCaps weathered a wild first period with the help of goaltender Jussi Olkinuora, before finding offensive inroads in the second. Cheap Nike Huaraches Shoes . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. Twenty-four hours before facing former club Melbourne Victory, Danny Vukovic was laid up at home popping vitamins.The Sydney FC goalkeeper sat out Fridays final training session with a virus thats already worked its way through teammates Michael Zullo, David Carney and Milos Ninkovic, his recovery the priority before Saturdays blockbuster Big Blue at Allianz Stadium.Coach Graham Arnold will need Vukovics safe hands when the undefeated, table-topping Sky Blues host a staunch rival they havent beaten in nine meetings.The match shapes as Vukovics sternest test yet, against the team he played for last season before being released on compassionate grounds due to his sons health issues.And the gloveman is adamant nothing will stop him taking his place between the posts.Ill play with a broken leg if I have to, Vukovic told AAP.We just thought better to rest until Saturday night rather than exerting myself a little bit and slowing the healing process down.Ill be a lot better in 24 hours and the adrenaline will get me through.Hed want to hope so because he could be busy.Vukovic is bracing himself for the menace that is Besart Berisha, the former teammate who netted a hat-trick in Mondays 6-1 shellacking of Wellington.On a larger scale, he knows from experience how formidable Kevin Muscats Victory can be, particuularly when pumped up on a big win and looking to burst Sydneys bubble.ddddddddddddhey showed (against the Phoenix) just how dangerous they can be when they get it right, Vukovic said.They were showing signs of a game like that and maybe been a little bit unlucky at the start of the season.But theyre always capable of a result like that with the attacking players theyve got.If we keep a clean sheet theres a very good chance well win because weve got some very good players in our front third who are putting the ball in the back of the net regularly.Its a good thing clean sheets are Vukovics specialty.The 31-year-old is in a rich vein of form and the only custodian in the league yet to concede a goal.He also ranks second for saves with 12, just one less than Lawrence Thomas, the man who displaced him as Victorys No.1 late last season.Though Sydneys impenetrable defence has ensured hes only had to deal with the fewest shots on target.Vukovic insists therell be no strange emotions during the game.Ive played for quite a few clubs in the league and had to do it before, he said.I played with them last season, thats in the past now and Im focusing on what I need to do for Sydney FC. 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