Serena Williams’ long road back from injury and personal tragedy ended in a seventh grand slam crown Saturday as she fought from a set down to beat Lindsay Davenport and win the Australian Open.

The former world number one showed that reports of her demise had been greatly exaggerated by battling through an early injury setback to defeat top seed and fellow American Davenport 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 on the Rod Laver Arena.

Williams said winning her first grand slam since victory in the 2003 Wimbledon final was all the sweeter after persistent suggestions that her career was in an irreversible decline.

"It is a very fashionable way to decline," Williams said. "It’s that much sweeter because people are always wondering about what’s happening to us.

"It’s been a long way coming back. But I’m almost to my goal, and it feels great," added Williams, who is now eyeing Davenport’s No.1 ranking after leaping up to second place in the standings.

The 23-year-old’s win comes after a disappointing 2004 where she failed to win a grand slam title and saw her ranking dip outside the top 10 for the first time since 1999.

Her slump came while she struggled for fitness following knee surgery and a stomach muscle injury, and followed the personal trauma of having her sister Yetunde Price murdered in Los Angeles.

But battling back in the face of adversity has become Williams’ calling card, and her fighting mentality was on show again as she downed Davenport despite suffering a back injury in the first game of the opening set.

Williams, who had saved match points in the semi-finals to win through to the final mirroring her feat in the 2003 Australian Open, is the only woman to win two grand slams from matchpoint down.

Williams admitted she had been in trouble after wrenching her back as she stretched for a shot early in the first set of a match played under cover at a rain-lashed Melbourne Park.

"She was just killing me in the first set," said Williams. "But I just said to myself, ‘I’m not going to lose, I’m not going to lose.’

"When my back went, I thought ‘Oh no, this is not happening’. But they manipulated it and it went back in and it felt fine after that," she added.

Davenport, who had delayed retirement at the end of last year after convincing herself that she could still challenge for major titles, paid tribute to her opponent’s character.

"I have to congratulate Serena. She’s had a tough couple of years and she’s come back like the great champion she is," said the 28-year-old. "Everyone should applaud her for coming through what she’s gone through."

Williams had looked to be heading for defeat as a confident Davenport raced away with the first set, breaking her opponent twice to forge a 4-1 lead.

Williams, clearly restricted by the injury, needed a medical time-out for treatment but it wasn’t enough to prevent Davenport from closing out the set.

Yet the match turned against Davenport in the fifth game of the second set after the opening four games had gone with serve, Williams suddenly generating more power on serve than she had done in her injury-hit first set.

She fought back from 15-40 down to level and then staved off four more break points to hold for a crucial 3-2 lead.

Williams admitted that holding serve in the fifth game had been vital.

"At that point I just did not want to lose that particular game," she said.

"I was serving so many balls my arm was hurting. I said, ‘I don’t care if my arm falls off, I’m not going to lose this game.’

"I just kept going for the serves and I just kept fighting. I knew that was a very pivotal game. For some reason, I just felt it, I said, ‘Okay, I need to win this one.’

Though both players held serve comfortably in the sixth and seventh games, the momentum had clearly swung Williams’ way and a disastrous service game from Davenport handed her opponent the intiative in the eighth.

Leading 40-0, Davenport’s composure deserted her and she allowed Williams to force deuce. A loose forehand gave Williams break point on advantage and a jittery Davenport then double-faulted to find herself 3-5 down.

"I felt like I was playing well and, you know, in control pretty much of the match, moving the ball around well," Davenport said.

"Then I had that horrible lapse ... That kind of opened the door for her," said Davenport. "She just kept going through it. She raised her game and started serving really well and hard.

"She’s a great frontrunner when she plays. Once she took the lead, she kept playing better and better."

Davenport’s second set blip was all the encouragement Williams needed, and she served out the set to love, levelling the match with her eighth ace.

Scenting blood, Williams then went in for the kill in the third set as Davenport’s game disintegrated. She snatched breaks in the first, third and fifth games and then earned two match points with her 12th ace of the match.

Davenport sent a backhand long to hand the title to Williams.