Serena chases perfect 10,says pressure’s on Safina

Adding spice to the match,the winner will replace Serb Jelena Jankovic as the number one ranked player in the world. Williams said she was keen to “leave her mark” and enter the elite group of players with 10 or more majors but felt relaxed going into the 13th Grand Slam decider of her career.

The 27-year-old has struggled with poor form in the tournament but still did enough to reach the final,becoming the biggest prizewinner in the history of women’s sport on the way.

“I feel like I have nothing to lose. If I win,that would be great. If I lose,I’ll just leave with the confidence that I can get far in a tournament when I’m not playing my best and go home and work even harder for the next time,” the reigning US Open champion said.

Williams,who came into the tournament as second seed,said she was desperate to win a fourth title in Melbourne,where she has triumphed in every final she has contested.

The American has a 5-1 winning record over Safina,seeded third,whose only previous appearance in a Grand Slam final was a straight sets loss to Ana Ivanovic in last year’s French Open.

But Williams was wary of Safina,who she said had transformed into an intense,tenacious and incredibly fit player whose loss at Roland Garros would spur her on in Saturday’s final.

“She’s going to be way more hungry for it and want it even more. That’s going to be definitely going for her,” she said.

For Safina,a win in the final would allow her to finally emerge from elder brother Marat Safin’s shadow. It would also create a piece of history,with the siblings becoming the first brother-sister combination to each hold the number one ranking.

The 22-year-old,who admits her combustible temperament sometimes means she is her own worst enemy on the court,expected her French Open experience would help settle any big-match nerves during Saturday’s final.

“I hope all the experience,all the pressure,I went through in that match will help me for my next match on Saturday,” she said.

She has shed seven kilograms (15.5 pounds) in the past six months and will contest the final in the best physical shape of her life,also crediting coach Zeljko Krajan with adding mental steel to her game.

Her new attitude was on display when she defeated Australia’s Jelena Dokic in front of a fiercely parochial crowd in the quarter-finals,a win she said would not have happened 12 months ago.

“I stayed very tough mentally there,I didn’t panic,” she said. It made me stronger now. I hope (the crowd) are going to be behind me,as I’m underdog coming into the final.” While some players concede they feel intimidated against Williams,Safina said she was eager to test herself against the American.

“I can’t talk about the other players,how they feel when they play against her,just myself. We played three times last year and I beat her once. I’m looking forward to playing against her this time,” she said.