It took two minutes for Angelique Kerber to show Serena Williams that she was ready to answer every question thrown at her in the Wimbledon final. Williams fired down an ad 114mph serve out wide then connected with a sizzling crosscourt forehand, Kerber returned the serve then reset the point with a deep backhand.  Williams directed a venomous backhand down the line, Kerber easily tracked the ball, then flipped from defense to offense with a wicked crosscourt angle that forced Williams scrambling past the sidelines. Williams recovered, then uncorked heavy crosscourt forehand blow, Kerber deflected the pace with a deep crosscourt backhand. Finally, after this one 19-stroke rally, Williams ran out of patience and sent a forehand into the net.

In any of Williams’ previous matches in Wimbledon, she would have won the point in four different ways. Instead, that sixth point proved a warning for what gradually turned into a quick, unremarkable straight sets victory by Kerber.  For 62 minutes, Williams probed the Kerber defense and looked for as many solutions as she could think. But as Kerber answered every question with depth or angle or a point-flipping injection of pace, Serena became increasingly panicked. Her footwork became static, her range wildly misfired. Nerves sprung as her lack of preparation caught up. By the final service game, she was missing sitters 10 inches from the net.

The match itself was less interesting than what it all represented. Despite her ranking, her lack of match practice, and everything that made this such an incredible story, Serena arrived in the final as favorite against a two-time slam champion enjoying a great year, particularly at the slams. In a way, this is normal for Serena Williams because she is Serena Williams.

But this was different. The predictions weren't the usual begrudging acceptance that this is the order of things and that, given all she has achieved in her career, the absurdity of winning Wimbledon in her fourth tournament and only 15th match back after giving birth seemed to fit snugly into the narrative arc of her career. Rather, for once, people actually seemed to be willing it to fruition.

Throughout the fortnight in Wimbledon, Williams was cheered more loudly than she ever has been, aside from in doubles matches with her sister, and covered more warmly than ever. Whereas news/tabloid journalists would normally be needling her with questions for an awkward story, creating friction in the process, throughout the week she was simply asked countless questions about motherhood.

Very little mind was paid to the two-time slam champion across the net who had already competed against Serena in two previous slam finals and had the audacity to bring her very top level in both electric encounters, stunningly winning the first and then playing her part in an extremely high two set final two years ago at Wimbledon.

In this encounter, Kerber showed that she is perhaps the only player in the world who can say that her game actually matches up quite well to Williams'. It is conditional. It rests on just how well she can cover her serve with both high first serve percentage while hitting her spots well, but when she does, she returns Williams' serve as well as any other player and gives Williams fewer free points than anyone else.

Matchups determine even more in tennis than arbitrary level. Williams did play at a high level at Wimbledon, but Camila Giorgi and Julia Goerges are completely different types of players. Williams was happily the conservative and consistent player on the court in both matches, hitting fewer winners than Goerges and the pace of her strokes and serve were all considerably less than Giorgi's. After not facing a single top 100 defensive player in her 14 matches back, in the Wimbledon final she faced arguably the very best defensive player in the game. Kerber showed how high the bar still is and how any lack of preparation or will is not nearly enough.

Kerber leaves Wimbledon with her third slam and also, perhaps, the argument that she possesses one of the best defenses women’s tennis has seen. Her sheer foot speed is transcendent, but what defines her is ability to get on the ball while on the run and at full stretch off both wings, powered by her supreme quads. Even while stretching, she can create angles, she redirects any measure of pace, she hits screaming down the line forehand winners from any position. While some defensive players struggle when forced forward, she is also skillful with flicked angled shots and aggressive pickups when dropshots drag her forward.

After the match, the respect was high as ever. Williams was gracious, while Kerber affirmed that Williams would be winning slams again very soon. It’s a sentiment that many players have uttered to their vanquished foes, but not usually with such certainty and force. It seemed to greatly reflect Kerber’s outlook, who is free of ego and, unlike some players, attempts to project a mentality. After facing each other in three recent slam finals, there’s a real possibility that more will come and that she could lose next time. But what matters is that she’ll be there to answer as many questions as she can.