Stosur's belief pays off

When Sam Stosur stepped on to the Arthur Ashe Stadium court to play Serena Williams in the US Open final on Sunday few people gave her any chance of beating the 13-time grand slam champion.
The Australian was up against the greatest player of her generation on her home court and on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
The center court stands were packed and the home supporters were baying for an American winner and Williams, who returned to the game in June after a brush with death, was widely considered a sure-fire winner.
Stosur had never won a major singles title and at her only previous grand slam final, last year's French Open, she crumbled under the pressure.
The 27-year-old was better known as a doubles player and had been lucky just to get to the final, clawing and scratching her way through the early rounds. Nobody gave her any hope.
When Stosur walked into that bearpit of a stadium, she knew the odds were stacked against her, but did not give up hope.
"I felt like I was definitely the underdog going into it, so maybe that kind of made me a little more relaxed going into this match, especially after my last grand slam final," Stosur said.
"I had to believe I had a chance to win and obviously having two victories over her in the past definitely helped me feel that it was possible."
Stosur had endured a wild ride to the final. Three of her last four matches had gone three sets and she been involved in the longest women's match played at the US Open and the longest tiebreak at a grand slam.
But those matches only hardened her resolve and made her realise the sacrifices she had made through a career that had been riddled with setbacks and self-doubt.
"My story is probably no different to many others, but when I was younger, my family gave up a lot," she said. "They saw that I had this dream and drive and determination to be a tennis player."