The quest for another Wimbledon title by Serena Williams was punctured on Saturday as Simona Halep roundly beat the American in the 2019 final.
On Saturday, Halep performed a near-flawless final beating Serena 6-2, 6-2 on the center court to become first Romanian woman to win at Wimbledon.
Although Serena already set a record in her bid for a record-equaling 24th major as the oldest Grand Slam finalists, the attempt was ruined by Halep, who only wins her Wimbledon maiden title.
Serena, 37, is still one win short of the all-time record of Margaret Court and that dream is becoming increasingly unlikely by the day.
At the end she would have been weeping inside, though the American smiled graciously.
On the other side, in celebrating a 6-2, 6-2 drubbing in just 56 minutes of perhaps the greatest player of her game, Halep shone like a lighthouse.