Serena Williams still has her sights set on SW19 record

Serena Williams will go into every tournament she enters as favourite for years to come.

It’s simple really. If the American is healthy and motivated, she wins because she is in a different class to the rest of the field.

So she starts as favourite not only to win the Wimbledon Women’s Singles once again this year, but to complete her second ‘Serena Slam’ of holding all four Grand Slam titles at the same time.

There should be no ‘ifs or buts’ about it. And yet, Serena has not won Wimbledon since 2012.

A year ago she blew out to the unheralded Alize Cornet in one of the biggest upsets in Wimbledon history. The year before she lost to Sabine Lisicki of Germany.

These defeats defied logic. But strange things can happen especially to Serena.

Witness her extraordinary exit from Wimbledon last year when she turned up on court for a Doubles match with sister, Venus, and was so uncoordinated, she could barely make contact with the ball.

You never know quite what to expect from Serena. But one thing is certain. She is still the best player in the world at an age when most players have long been retired.

The American will be 34 later this year, but I see no sign of any ageing in her appearance or play. I believe she is still at her peak, and could stay there for years because she works so hard.

She has already won Wimbledon five times, and has a bit to go to catch Martina Navratilova’s record of receiving the Rosewater Dish at SW19 nine times. But I wouldn’t put that past Serena.

I take the view that she is very close to being the greatest player of all time in the women’s game.

I find it hard to think of any real rivals.

Of course, it’s difficult to judge different eras of the game because of the improvements in technology and fitness. But I cannot think of any player that Serena would not have overcome through her power and pace.

Like Navratilova, Steffi Graf was an unbelievable athlete with a great forehand, but the German girl’s backhand was not a real threat. Serena would have pounced on that weakness.

I certainly believe Serena’s biggest weapon, her serve, is the greatest of all time. The technique is perfect and the execution awesome.

Serena is second only to Maria Sharapova as a competitor. She is a warrior on court, and that’s why I cannot see anyone beating her if she is fit and motivated.

Furthermore, right now, the motivation stands out a mile.

There is the Serena Slam, which she achieved the first time in 2002-03; there is the chance of a true calendar Grand Slam which entails winning Wimbledon and the US Open; and she has Graf’s Open era record of 22 Majors in her sights.

It can only be the pressure she puts on herself that accounts for those shock defeats at the last two Wimbledons.

Perhaps nerves are a weakness, and on grass points can be won and lost quickly. You look at the scoreboard and can start to panic.

Maybe that’s the game plan for Serena’s opponents go all out to win a few cheap points, and hope that she panics.

But that’s easier said than done!