Serena Williams after beating Daniela Hantuchova in Wimbledon on Monday. (AP)

Inside the notebook that Serena Williams took on to Centre Court were inscribed the words: “My good thoughts are powerful, any negative thoughts are weak. You are No. 1, you are the best. You will win Wimbledon.”

Every tenet of that philosophy came to her aid on Monday, as the two-time champion rallied from acute cramp to defeat Daniela Hantuchova in a contest of fragmented, ferocious drama.

Williams is an avowed film enthusiast, and the script she followed here showed her eye for extraordinary plot twists. In the climax to the second set, the seventh seed’s cause had appeared hopeless, as the onset of spasms in her left calf reduced her to shrieks of agony. Rain provided her rescue halfway through the tie-break, and after a 115-minute delay — during which she received all the massage and ice she needed — she reappeared refreshed and almost frighteningly refocused.

Never has Williams been so physically vulnerable in the theatre of battle. Never has she been so emotionally exposed. Her powers of recovery, though, were something to behold — the ‘Serena bubble’, it is called, when Williams works herself without warning into a frenzy of defiant hitting. A more composed character than Hantuchova might have exploited her opponent’s fragile state, but the momentum switch proved decisive as the American powered to an improbable 6-2, 6-7, 6-2 victory.

“I decided I was going to die trying,” Williams said. “I just had to go back on court, no matter what. It would have been weird if I hadn’t tried.” She disclosed, too, that her doctor had been worried about lasting damage to her career if she carried on, though by the time she prevailed her face reflected little of her earlier agonies.

The first signal that Williams was in trouble had come before her collapse, when she called for the trainer at 5-5 in the second set, asking for salt to be brought to treat her cramp. Her concern was soon made manifest — up 30-15 on Hantuchova’s serve, she did nothing more than pace the baseline before she pulled up abruptly on her left leg, tapped the calf with her racket and collapsed to the ground.

Her face creased in pain, she was aided immediately by her trainer, who began to apply a deep massage.

The calf was taped up, but as play resumed her prospects looked wretched. Hantuchova fired down an ace. Williams pitched a return resignedly into the net.

The next game, however, triggered a remarkable turn. From somewhere within her tangle of emotions, the American drew the resolve to hold serve. Even given the inequities of the women’s game, this gave a whole new meaning to being able to win on one leg.

Still, Williams’ total lack of mobility was hardly a help in the ensuing tie-break, and as the rain intervened for a crucial reprieve at 5.33 pm she trailed 4-2. When she finally re-emerged, she sported leggings to ward off the cold.

At first, Williams could hardly move. Wincing at every error, she showed uncharacteristic flashes of temper. But such frustration was more than matched by her motivation — with each scream of “come on”.

It was this intensity that unnerved Hantuchova, and by the time Williams hit her final winner, the 10th seed looked spent and utterly bemused.

DAY VII RESULTS

MEN’S SINGLES ROUND IV — Roger Federer (1, Sui) bt Tommy Haas (13, Ger) w/o; ROUND III — Mikhail Youzhny (14, Rus) bt Jarkko Nieminen (18, Fin) 7-5, 7-6 (5), 6-3; Jonas Bjorkman (19, Swe) bt Wayne Arthurs (Aus) 6-2, 6-1, 6-4; Marcos Baghdatis (10, Cyp) bt David Nalbandian (23, Arg) 6-2, 7-5, 6-0; Tomas Berdych (7, Cze) bt Lee Hyung-Taik (Kor) 6-4, 7-6 (2), 7-6(3)
WOMEN’S SINGLES ROUND IV — Serena Williams (7, US) bt Daniela Hantuchova (10, Slo) 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-2; Michaella Krajicek (31, Ned) bt Laura Granville (US) 6-3, 6-4; Justine Henin (1, Bel) bt Patty Schnyder (15, Sui) 6-2, 6-2; ROUND III — Venus Williams (23, US) bt Akiko Morigami (Jpn) 6-2, 3-6, 7-5; Tamira Paszek (Aut) bt Elena Dementieva (12, Rus) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3; Nadia Petrova (11, Rus) bt Virginia Ruano Pascual (Esp) 6-3, 7-6 (3); Ana Ivanovic (6, Ser) bt Aravane Rezai (Fra) 6-3, 6-2; Svetlana Kuznetsova (5, Rus) bt Agnieszka Radwanska (Pol) 6-2, 6-3; Nicole Vaidisova (14, Cze) bt Victoria Azarenka (Blr) 6-4, 6-2.