Top seed Serena Williams withstood a tense first set and a late match charge to take out fifth seed Maria Sharapova 6-4, 6-1 to enter the Australian Open tennis semi-finals here on Tuesday.
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“She presents a completely different game, an extremely exciting game”, Williams said of the wily Pole. For the 21st time, and for the third time in the last five Grand Slams, Sharapova will go head-to-head with Serena Williams.
1, withstood a steady challenge from Sharapova in a 55-minute first set and then blew the match open, winning 6-4, 6-1 to book her place in the Australian Open semifinals.
Serena Williams of the USA (R) shakes hands with Russia’s Maria Sharapova after winning their women’s singles match on day nine of the 2016 Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 26, 2016.
Djokovic eased past Kei Nishikori 6-3 6-2 6-4 while Federer beat Tomas Berdych 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 6-4. What ever happens I’m happy to come out to play another final.
Each of the six previous times Williams has won a quarterfinal at Melbourne Park, she has won the title at the season-opening Grand Slam tournament. “I thought at times, you know, when I got in the rally I wasn’t moving forward, wasn’t cutting the angles off enough”, Sharapova said.
It is 12 years since Williams lost to the Russian, and the world number one moves on to face fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the last four.
The Russian began her tournament with a win over Nao Hibino in straight sets 6-1, 6-3 before knocking out Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the second round 6-2, 6-1. “The second week of Grand Slams, it doesn’t matter who you are playing”.
She further dismissed the idea that this might be her 16th and final appearance at the year’s first grand slam, she said: “Hopefully not, unless you know something I don’t”. Williams will be aiming for her 22nd major title, tying her with another German, Steffi Graf.
“Sharapova has a chance to take it out for 10 years and decrease her lag in personal meetings (vs. Serena Williams).
I think I showed everybody that I deserve it. That’s a good feeling”. I didn’t rest good. “Regardless, whoever gets to the final it will be a great thing”.
“I think if you’re serving maybe 180 (kph) against somebody else compared to Serena, that’s an ace”.
The win makes Federer the oldest man since 1979 to reach the Australian Open semifinals.
“I’ve been playing this whole week aggressive and I don’t think I started out playing that way”.
Williams twice called for a trainer during the contest but allayed any concerns about injury, instead claiming she suffered food poisoning last week.
The Swiss, 34, fell behind early in the first and third sets but hit back immediately both times and was dominant for the most part on serve.
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Jamie Murray and Brazil’s Bruno Soares advanced to the doubles final with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Adrian Mannarino and Lucas Pouille and will next meet Daniel Nestor and Radek Stepanek, who beat Pablo Cuevas and Marcel Granollers 7-6 (11), 6-4. But she returned really well on those deuce points.
