Serena Williams insists she is in the form of her life following Australian Open triumph

Serena Williams insists she is in the form of her life after she secured her 23rd Grand Slam title with victory over sister Venus in the Australian Open final.

Williams broke the Open-era record courtesy of her triumph on Saturday, moving her above Steffi Graf in the all-time list and leaving her one short of Margaret Court's unmatched 24.

The 35-year-old has won 10 major titles since turning 30 and has made eight out of the last Grand Slam 10 finals.

"I was thinking yesterday on the practice court, 'gosh I'm playing better than I have ever before I think'," Williams said.

"I'm moving better, I've always been a fast mover but I stopped moving a bit in the middle of my career because I was like, I don't have to move so much.

"But I was like, 'man I'm hitting really well'. It feels good to be playing this well at the moment."

Williams says her rise in the game is all down to mental strength and never giving up, a trait learned from legends like Graf, Court, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert.

Navratilova and Evert won 18 Grand Slam titles apiece, four less than Graf, and though Court won 24, only 11 of those titles were won after the more competitive Open era began in 1968.

Williams said they all had one thing in common - fighting spirit.

"One thing about a champion, they keep fighting, they keep going," she said.

"I just feel like those four really are incredible fighters. They're mentally tough as well. They always kept going.

"It's something that I learned from them a lot, is how to hopefully do the same, which hopefully I've been able to do."

Williams had been reluctant to talk about records in Melbourne to keep the pressure off, but she is now ready to acknowledge her standing as one of the greatest women players of all time, if not the greatest.

"I definitely think so. I mean, between Martina, myself, Steffi Graf, hands down we are leading that conversation," she said.