Sunday 5 June 2016 18:39, UK
Serena Williams refused to make excuses after she was defeated by Garbine Muguruza in the French Open final.
The American was looking to equal Steffi Graf's record of 22 Grand Slam titles but fell short once again, having also been defeated in the Australian Open final earlier this year.
Muguruza won a keenly-contested match 7-5 6-4 and Williams said the thigh injury that has been troubling her was not the decisive factor.
"It was OK," she said of the injury. "I'm not one to ever make excuses and say 'Oh, my adductor was hurting,' or whatever.
"At the end of the day I didn't play the game I needed to play to win and she did. Adductor or not, she played to win.
"She won the first set by one point. I mean, that just goes to show, you really have to play the big points well, and she played the big points really well."
Regarding her quest to draw level with Graf, Williams added: "The only thing I can do is just keep trying.
"In Australia, (champion) Angelique Kerber made 16 errors in three sets, you know, so what do you do in that situation? Today, Garbine played unbelievable.
"I could have served better and I made a lot of errors on my return but it's going in the right direction, I think."
And Williams thinks there is plenty more to come from Muguruza, who became the first Spanish woman since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1998 to win a Grand Slam title.
"I think she has a bright future, obviously," said Williams. "She knows how to play on the big stage and she clearly knows how to win Grand Slams.
"She's definitely hitting hard. She just goes for broke on every shot and it works for her."
