"Serena Williams is better in all departments, which is enough to destroy you mentally & suck out your soul" - Andrea Petkovic

Andrea Petkovic recently described the difficulty of facing Serena Williams when the legendary American is playing at her best. Petkovic claimed Williams is superior to her opponents in every aspect, and that her dominance is so complete it seems like she is "sucking out their soul".

Andrea Petkovic has lost all five of her matches against Serena Williams. She has taken just one set in these encounters, back in the pair's very first clash (Rome 2010).

Williams won her most recent match against the German 6-3, 6-2, at the 2015 Canadian Open.

Petkovic, who has been as high as ninth in the WTA rankings but is now down to No. 75, is currently in action at the Melbourne Summer Set 1 WTA 250 event. The 34-year-old will face top seed Naomi Osaka in the quarterfinals on Friday, having beaten Liudmila Samsonova and Clara Burel in her first two matches.

In an interview with the WTA Insider on Thursday, Andrea Petkovic asserted that Serena Williams' power is not the only thing that makes her such an intimidating opponent to face when at her peak.

"With Serena, people think she just plays power tennis," Petkovic said. "Actually, when Serena is playing her best, she is not playing that power tennis. It's a different way of feeling powerless against her because she really builds a point well."

The German further stated that when a player realizes Williams is stronger in all aspects of the game, it becomes demoralizing.

"So with Serena, you just have the feeling when she's playing well that in every part of the game, she's just that much better," Petkovic continued. "You just feel she's better in all the departments, just a tiny bit, which is enough to destroy you on court mentally and like, suck out your soul [laughs]."

Serena Williams will not play the 2022 Australian Open

Serena Williams at the 2021 Australian Open

Serena Williams will not compete at the 2022 Australian Open as she is still recovering from a hamstring tear. The 40-year-old hasn't played a single match since sustaining the injury during her first round match at Wimbledon in June.

Williams needs to win just one more Grand Slam title to tie Margaret Court's women's singles record of 24 Major crowns. She has lost in four Major finals since her most recent Slam triumph, which came at the 2017 Australian Open.

The American currently sits at No. 41 in the WTA rankings, having played just six events in 2021. She is expected to return to the tour during the North American hardcourt swing, starting with Indian Wells in March.