Serena wins 6th Australian Open, 19th Grand Slam title after again defeating Sharapova

World No. 1 Serena Williams did it again Saturday in Melbourne: she beat No. 2 Maria Sharapova 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) and won her sixth Australian Open and 19th Grand Slam title. All while fighting a cold. 

It's her Open Era-record sixth title in Australia, and Serena's 19 career Slam titles move her into second place all time, three behind Steffi Graf's 22, breaking a three-way tie between Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, and herself. Williams also improves to an incredible 19-4 in Grand Slam finals. 

For Sharapova, it's another in a long streak of disappointing defeats to Williams, who has now won 16 matches between the two in a row over the past 11 years. Sharapova put up a fight, especially in the second set, saving two match points before falling 7-5 in the tiebreak. 

Serena rode her dominant serve, easily the greatest in women's tennis history, to another title. She finished with 18 aces to Sharapova's five, and won a whopping 84 percent of her first-serve points. Whenever she needed a big serve, especially in the second set when Sharapova played her best tennis and was seemingly gaining momentum, Serena found it. 

Sharapova fought nerves - and probably history - in a disappointing first set. She was broken immediately to start the match, and ended up losing three of her service games, dropping the set 6-3. The set was delayed by 12 minutes due to a rain delay and a Serena bathroom break. 

Wiliams was fighting a cold Friday, and was harshly coughing during the delay. She's the Michael Jordan of women's tennis, and all that was missing was a shrug after an ace. 

While Sharapova recovered in the second set, making the match competitive, it was far too little, far too late. Serena, who improved to an astounding 17-0 when winning the first set of a Grand Slam final, has Sharapova's number, now and seemingly forever more. 

Serena finished with 38 winners to Sharapova's 21, and while the Russian committed only 15 unforced errors to the American's 25, Sharapova had no answer for Serena's serve, as has been the case for years for so many. 

Williams improves to 6-0 in Australian Open finals, and wins the tournament at 33 for the first time since 2010. 

Check out the live blog below to relive the glory that was the first Australian Open final between the top-two seeds since 2004. 

Live Blog

5:36 a.m. ET: An ace to end the match. Serena Williams has won the Australian Open for the sixth time, defeating Maria Sharapova 6-3, 7-6, and won her 19th Grand Slam title.

5:35 a.m. ET: Sharapova saves another match point with another forehand winner down the line. Unbelievable. It's 6-5 Serena, with Williams serving. 

5:29 a.m. ET: Serena's up 4-1 in the second-set tiebreak. She does not want to play a third set. 

5:26 a.m. ET: Sharapova holds at love to force a tiebreak; 6-6. A very gutsy second set from the Russian. 

5:23 a.m. ET: Serena holds, finishing with an ace, and is again a game away from the title. It's 6-5 Williams in the second set, after she took the first set 6-3. 

5:18 a.m. ET: Sharapova saves a match point with a brilliant forehand winner down the line and stays alive. Her first serve has abandoned her, but she's fighting. It's 5-5 in the second set. And Maria's now three-for-three using her backhand drop shot. 

5:11 a.m. ET: We're still waiting for our first break of the second set. It's 5-4 Williams after back-to-back holds. Serena has 14 aces to Sharapova's four, and 30 winners to Sharapova's 14, as the match approaches 90 minutes. 

5:03 a.m. ET: More holds, although they were both close. It's 4-3 Serena in the second set, after Sharapova couldn't take advantage of a break point. Sharapova, though, has conquered her nerves and is playing excellent tennis, much better than in the first. The only problem is it may be too late. And she still has no answer for Serena's serve, which is the only reason Williams is ahead.

4:51 a.m. ET: Both women are holding serve in the second set. It's 3-2 Serena, and Williams is up to 10 aces on the match, after three more in game five. Whenever Serena needs a big serve, it's there to quiet Sharapova and kill any momentum the Russian builds.

4:43 a.m. ET: Serena responds to Sharapova's hold by winning her service game at love. It's 2-1 Williams, who's up a set and four games away from her 19th career Grand Slam title. 

4:41 a.m. ET: A crucial hold by Sharapova, as she saves multiple break points to tie the second set at 1-1. 

4:36 a.m. ET: Serena opens up the second set with a dominant service game. 1-0 Williams, and once again Serena is simply looking too good for Sharapova.

4:32 a.m. ET: Sharapova's broken for the third time Saturday, and Williams wins the first set 6-3. Serena's well on her way to her sixth Australian Open and 19th Grand Slam title. 

4:30 a.m. ET: Sharapova fights back with a break of her own, thanks to two double-faults from Williams. But it's about as uphill a climb can get. 5-3 Serena. 

4:25 a.m. ET: Serena's up two breaks. She's won all six points since the delay, with three winners. It's 5-2 Williams, and the first set's all but over. 

4:22 a.m. ET: Serena opened up play after the delay with an ace, and then blasted a forehand winner to hold serve. It's 4-2 Williams. 

4:20 a.m. ET: The roof's closed, but now a doctor is reportedly attending to Serena Williams, who was battling a cold Friday, and was audibly coughing as she made her way back to the court after the rain delay. It remains 3-2 Williams in the first set, and 30-30 in game six. We're into minute 12 of the delay. 

4:10 a.m. ET: We've got a delay at Rod Laver Arena as the rain is falling harder, and we're waiting for the roof to close. Serena's gone to the locker room while Sharapova's seated, and ball boys and girls are physically toweling down the court. 

4:05 a.m. ET: Sharapova's using her backhand drop shot early, and it's working so far. She's two-for-two, and holds serve. She remains down a break. 3-2 Serena in the first set. 

4:03 a.m. ET: Serena holds, and is up 3-1. Three of her first serves were all but unreturnable. Sharapova's actually winning more rallies of four or more shots so far, but it hasn't translated to success. 

3:57 a.m. ET: Sharapova's on the board, holding serve in what amounted to a must-win third game. She's connected on only seven of 14 first serves so far. 2-1 Serena. 

3:55 a.m. ET: Serena's got that look early. She's up 2-0 in the first set, and Sharapova's looking shaky. 

3:51 a.m. ET: After one game, Serena's up a break. Sharapova opened the match by serving and after dropping the first two points, she was up 40-30 before Serena whipped a brilliant cross-court forehand on the run to push the game to deuce. Sharapova double-faulted to give Serena what could be a massive break early. 1-0 Serena. 

3:36 a.m. ET: Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova have taken the court for the Australian Open women's final. The roof's open at Rod Laver Arena, but light rain is falling. Regardless, it's tennis time. And the first set is big: Serena's a perfect 16-0 when winning the opening set of a Grand Slam final.