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MELBOURNE, Australia – Following her record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam triumph at the Australian Open, newly re-crowned World No.1 Serena Williams sat down with a small pool of reporters after her non-stop media duties, reflecting on her fortnight and look ahead at what’s to come:

Q: Setting aside Slam No.23, World No.1, how do you assess your two weeks here in Melbourne? How do you feel it sets you up for 2017?
Serena: I feel like my game is good. I was thinking yesterday on the practice court, ‘Gosh, I’m playing better than I have, maybe ever.’ I’m moving better – I’ve always been a fast mover, but I kind of stopped moving in the middle [of my career] thinking, ‘I don’t really have to move.’ But I was like, man, I’m hitting pretty well. So it felt pretty good to know that I’m playing better. I’m here to take this game pretty seriously.

Q: What’s the key difference? Is it a physical thing or a mental thing?
Serena: I don’t know. Every year I sit down with Patrick, and look at the things I want to improve. I want to do something better, and so we sat down this year to do the same thing. We said we wanted to do better, and we did better; we don’t want to stop, we want to continue to do better.

#SAPStatOfTheDay: @SerenaWilliams wins SIXTH Grand Slam without dropping a set all tournament! First time at the #AusOpen! pic.twitter.com/qpIhS4MiTy

— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017

Q: Did being No.2 motivate you at all to want to get back here and play your best? Did it piss you off?
Serena: It didn’t piss me off. I didn’t deserve to be No.1; I think Kerber played unbelievable. She was the most consistent, and she definitely deserved to have that position. That’s one thing about me, that when credit’s due, you have to give a person credit. She absolutely deserved it; it looked weird, because I never felt like No.2, but I think she definitely deserved to be No.1, she played well.

Q: We saw the genius of your father expressed this week. What was so special about him? What did he bring to your family, and as a dad?
Serena: Well, he’s brought everything. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him; this was his vision. It’s literally his vision, and he wrote this. He knew this would happen, us playing each other for yet another Grand Slam. He gave us the best games possible, that we could always build on; he gave us the best techniques possible. It’s crazy, really crazy. Another thing that’s so great is how our family is so important, and realizing that above all, we have to put each other first, way in front of a tennis ball. I think that’s something that I’ve always been able to appreciate. The older you get, the more you appreciate this.

Q: This is still very fresh, but after a performance, like that, how many more Slams do you think you can win?
Serena: I don’t think about that any more. At the next Grand Slam, I’m going to request you guys not to ask me about it again, because I just have to take it a day at a time [laughing].

What is a champion?

World No.1 and 23x Grand Slams, @SerenaWilliams! #MakeHistory pic.twitter.com/bUkH5Tbyto

— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017

I’ve been saying this since this tournament began: this is a bonus for me. I don’t have anything to prove; I don’t have to win another match. I can just relax, and that’s what I’m doing now. I’m going out there, relaxing and playing hard. I’m just enjoying my time, like this little fly over here [Note: A fly was buzzing around the small interview room].

Q: Talking about the last couple of years, you’ve been saying you have nothing to prove, and playing with house money. It seems like this tournament has been the one where you really lived that, as opposed to the last few tournaments where you’ve felt the tension.
Serena: I’ve been trying to live it for quite some time, but I definitely agree. I was really able to do it at this tournament. I’ve been trying to do it, and trying and trying. I don’t know why it worked now. I think having to play those matches in the first two rounds, I was like, ‘I have no choice but to be better.’

I was really just ok with, not losing, but I knew that I didn’t have to win here to make my career. For whatever reason, that settled with me this time. I don’t know why; I wish I could tell you, but I want to know because I definitely want to do it again next time. I need to figure that one out.

.@SerenaWilliams 23 Grand Slams!

7x @AustralianOpen ?
3x @RolandGarros ?
7x @Wimbledon ?
6x @USOpen ? pic.twitter.com/s5Bwpl35VG

— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017

Q: By regaining the No.1 spot, do you think trying to stay No.1 will be more of a priority, and will you play extra tournaments outside of the regular schedule?
Serena: I don’t know. I honestly was thinking, ‘I should go to Dubai and try to get my No.1 ranking back.’ I had no idea I was going to be No.1 after this. I was thinking about it, but I’m enjoying my time on the court, my game, the style I’m playing. It’s been kind of refreshing, and I definitely want to keep the momentum going. I don’t know; I’m going to go home, take a deep breath, and then start from there.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Unseeded and looming Daria Gavrilova enjoyed a strong start at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, dispatching Russian wildcard Anna Kalinskaya, 6-4, 7-5, to reach the second round.

“It was a tough match,” the Aussie said after the match. “I felt like I didn’t play my best tennis but I’m happy with the way I fought. I got the win but I think that I need to up my level.”

Gavrilova burst onto the scene as a junior prodigy, winning the 2010 girl’s singles title at the US Open and the Youth Olympic Gold medal; it was a full circle moment then for the now-22-year-old to face Kalinskaya, a runner-up at 2015’s junior Wimbledon.

“She’s four years younger than me. I didn’t actually know before that the gap was that big – I asked her and was surprised.

“I asked around because didn’t know how she played, which isn’t very easy. I asked a few girls but they didn’t give me much! My coach watched some videos and gave me some notes.”

Coming off another run to the second week of the Australian Open, Gavrilova battled through several long games to seal a 52-minute opening set, and recovered from a 3-5 deficit in the second to win the final four games and book a meeting against No.3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova.

“It’s not easy but I felt that I should be confident with my game. I had some long matches in Australia so I was feeling pretty confident.”

Gavrilova last played Kuznetsova last fall in Russia, where she made the final of the Kremlin Cup in singles and doubles; this is her first time the Moscow native is playing in St. Peterburg, which celebrated its inaugural event last year.

“I actually don’t remember when I was last in St. Petersburg. But I’m really enjoying being here and the organizers and sponsors did well with the hotel – it’s one of the best I’ve stayed in.”

Earlier in the day, Andrea Petkovic booked her spot in the main draw with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Anastasiya Komardina, while Kirsten Flipkens needed three sets to dispatch Donna Vekic, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5.

Serena and Venus Williams will bid to set up a fifth Williams sisters Wimbledon final on Thursday at SW19. Can Angelique Kerber and Elena Vesnina stop them? We preview both semifinals here at WTATennis.com, courtesy of contributor Chris Oddo.

Thursday

Semifinals

[1] Serena Williams (USA #1) vs. Elena Vesnina (RUS #50)
Head-to-head: Williams leads, 4-0
Key Stat: Williams is 27-4 in Grand Slam semifinals.

Serena Williams’ march to 22 majors is running at full throttle at the All England Club. The American legend is now just two matches from matching Steffi Graf’s record for Open Era Grand Slam titles after knocking off Svetlana Kuznetsova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the last two rounds. On Thursday the 34-year-old American will aim to make it a Russian trifecta when she takes on Elena Vesnina, the lowest-ranked and only unseeded player remaining in the draw. Surprised to see Vesnina make it this far at a major? So is she. “I am. I am very surprised,” she said after defeating Dominika Cibulkova to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal on Tuesday. “It was like a dream came true.” To avoid having her dream morph into a nightmare against the game’s premier power player, Vesnina says she’ll have to use any and every opportunity she gets. “You have to use your chances against Serena,” she said. “If she’s giving you chances, you need to be there.”

Williams has given her opponents a few too many chances in the latter stages of the last three majors, losing in the semifinals at the US Open last year, and in the finals of this year’s Australian and French Opens. But there is a different air about her on the Wimbledon grass. She leads all active players in wins and titles at SW19 and something about Centre Court just seems to bring out the spice in her legendary serve. Williams knows that Vesnina, a two-time Grand Slam doubles champion, is an accomplished player with an all-court game, but the American says she’ll take confidence from having won all four of their previous meetings. “I know her game really, really well,” Williams told reporters on Tuesday after reaching the semifinals “It’s good to play someone’s game that you know. I’ll be ready for it.”

Pick: Williams in two

[4] Angelique Kerber (GER #4) vs. [8] Venus Williams (USA #8)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 3-2
Key Stat: Venus Williams owns a 14-5 record in Grand Slam semifinals but has not played one since 2010.

Venus Williams has turned back the clock in a big way this Wimbledon fortnight. The five-time champion has been tested often, both by her opponents and the rain, and has come through with flying colors to reach the last four at a major for the first time since the 2010 US Open. Williams says the key to her success has been belief. “The good part is I always felt like I had the game,” she told the press after defeating Yaroslava Shvedova in the quarterfinals on Day 8. “This is always a plus, when you know you have the game. So you just have to keep working until things fall into place.”

The 36-year-old hopes that the dominoes of fate continue to fall in her favor on Thursday when she faces Angelique Kerber for the sixth time. The German endured a lull after winning this year’s Australian Open, but she has rediscovered the magic that brought her a maiden major title here at Wimbledon, reaching the semifinals without the loss of a set. “I’m feeling really good,” an enthusiastic Kerber said after pushing past Simona Halep in a wildly entertaining quarterfinal on Centre Court. “I’m playing really good tennis right now. I think I’m playing like in Australia, like really high‑class tennis.” Is Kerber playing well enough to end the magical run of a Wimbledon legend, or will Venus Williams reach a Grand Slam final for the first time in seven years?

Pick: Kerber in three

By the Numbers:

11 – Number of times that Venus and Serena have advanced to the semifinals of the same Grand Slam.

5 – Venus Williams can move to No.5 in the world if she wins the Wimbledon title.

18 – Elena Vesnina will crack the Top 20 for the first time if she reaches the final, coming in at a projected ranking of 18. She was ranked as low as 122 this February.

3 – Number of players to have reached a Grand Slam semifinal aged 36 or older (Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, Venus Williams).

LONDON, Great Britain – Angelique Kerber’s win over Venus Williams in the Wimbledon semifinals presents her with an exceptionally rare opportunity – with Serena Williams awaiting her in a rematch of the Australian Open final on Saturday, she could pull off the rare feat of beating both Williams sisters at the same tournament.

Only seven players have achieved the feat before, with one of them doing it twice – full list here:

Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario
1998 Sydney
(d Serena in SFs & Venus in F)

Steffi Graf
1999 Sydney
(d Serena in 2r & Venus in QFs)

Martina Hingis
2001 Australian Open
(d Serena in QFs & Venus in SFs)

Kim Clijsters
2002 WTA Finals
(d Venus in SFs & Serena in F)

Lindsay Davenport
2004 Los Angeles
(d Venus in SFs & Serena in F)

Justine Henin
2007 US Open
(d Serena in QFs & Venus in SFs)

Kim Clijsters
2009 US Open
(d Venus in 4r & Serena in SFs)

Jelena Jankovic
2010 Rome
(d Venus in QFs & Serena in SFs)