BERLIN -- The good thing about Serena Williams, her rivals thought, was that she was vulnerable on clay. Not any more.

	After losing the German Open the week before to Justine Henin, Serena Williams savors a little payback at the Italian Open.

The younger Williams sister had never gone beyond the quarterfinals of a tournament on her least-preferred surface before reaching the final at the German Open and winning the Italian Open in the past two weeks.

"Competition-wise this is the best I've ever played on this surface," Williams said. "There were a lot of positive aspects. I felt comfortable on clay and that's important with the French Open coming."

She did well at Roland Garros last year, reaching the last eight where she took eventual winner Jennifer Capriati to three sets.

But Williams believes she could be even more successful at this year's event, which starts on May 27.

Asked whether her first clay-court tournament triumph might be a Grand Slam, Williams replied without hesitation: "Yes, it's possible.

"Winning the French Open would be a dream come true. I like it there so much."

Williams, regarded as more technically gifted than her sister Venus, reached the quarterfinals of all four Grand Slams last year.

She has continued to shine this season with titles in Scottsdale and Miami and has lost only two matches since falling to Venus in the U.S. Open final last September.

Williams said that greater maturity and more hunger were the keys to her successful streak.

"Maybe I want it more," she said. "I'm a little older and more serious."

Many commentators predicted that Williams's good run would come to an end with the start of the clay-court season, given her tendency to make errors and lose patience on the surface.

"I think it's all mental," she said of her attitude on clay earlier this week. "Mentally it's there. I'm just waiting for my game to come.

"I don't think the surface is such an important factor to me, but for my opponents it is. The score is different on grass than on clay. On clay it's closer."