Serena Williams beat Maria Sharapova for the sixteenth consecutive match to win the trophy in Melbourne for the sixth time. The world number one overcame illness during the match to win her nineteenth grand slam title, leaving her just 3 away from Steffi Graf's record. The American served outstandingly well to win in a high quality final, 6-3 7-6 (7-5), despite a spirited comeback from Sharapova in the second set.
With Williams serving at 3-2 30-30 in the first set, the drizzle that had threatened before the match turned into heavier rain and play was suspended whilst the roof was put in place. It then became obvious that Williams wasn't well, the illness that had been affecting her all week forcing her into coughing fits. In the press conference later she revealed that she "ended up throwing up". Going on to say "I think that helped when I got everything out of me and cleared my chest out because I couldn't breathe a little bit." Despite this, Serena managed to hit 18 aces in an amazing serving display to win in 1 hour and 51 minutes.