Serena Williams needed just 48 minutes to beat Elena Vesnina on Thursday, but sister Venus Williams fell short in her attempt to set up an All-Williams women’s finale at Wimbledon when she lost 6-4, 6-4 to Angelique Kerber.
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The oldest woman in the draw at 36, Williams lost 6-4 6-4 to Germany’s Angelique Kerber on Thursday but has enjoyed something of a renaissance in reaching her first grand slam semi-final since 2010.
Earlier, a Champagne cork popped somewhere on Centre Court four games into Serena’s semifinal and while it was a tad premature, her 6-2, 6-0 thrashing of Elena Vesnina suggested she could be celebrating something special tomorrow.
The Russian held serve twice in the opening set, prompting sympathetic applause, but the world No. 50 was swept aside in the second set, winning only five points, as Serena marched to singles victory No. 85 at the All England Club.
Kerber has not dropped a set en route to her first Wimbledon final and she now leads the WTA in match wins this season with 34.
“I mean, I think for anyone else in this whole planet, it would be a wonderful accomplishment”, Serena said about reaching her third Grand Slam final of the year.
“I feel that we’ve found this”. Kerber is 3-0 from the same point of view, and she looks fully prepared for the Wimbledon final.
“I will go out there with a lot of confidence”, Kerber said of the Wimbledon 2016 final. I’m 0-2 this year so I’m determined to win one. “The scoreline just reflected me doing what I know I can do”. The Williams sisters have won the last three Olympic women’s doubles championships, and Serena won gold medals in both doubles and singles at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Perhaps the edge is off, if only slightly, because Williams was upset at the U.S. Open last September, then Australia, and also at last month’s French Open. So this is why I was a little bit nervous when I went there because I know that I have to play good tennis against Venus.
“I think we deserve equal prize money”, Serena told the reporter. ‘ She was finally asked about what she wants to see happen in terms of the perception of women’s tennis: ‘I would like to see people, the public, other athletes in general, just realize and respect women for who they are and what we are and what we do.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams has once again demanded equal pay across the sport. It’s just a very good feeling.
“For me, it’s about, obviously, holding the trophy and winning, which would make it a better accomplishment for me”.
“I couldn’t do anything today”, Vesnina said. “This makes me much more risky than on hard”.
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Venus had won all eight of her previous Wimbledon semi-finals dating back 16 years to her maiden appearance in the last four when she defeated Serena.
