Williams is scheduled to face Karolina Pliskova in the semifinals less than 24 hours after her three-set thriller against Halep.
Advertisement
ESPN will carry both women’s singles semifinal matches live on Thursday, beginning at 7 p.m. ET from Arthur Ashe Stadium. From behind the baseline, Halep dictated the point to get another game point and this time it was Williams who failed and helped the Romanian to hold to level things at 1-1. No. 10 Karolina Pliskova No. 2 Angelique Kerber vs.
Asked whether she expected to get some advice from her sibling before facing Pliskova, the younger Williams said: “I’m sure she will tell me something”.
Simona Halep was encouraged by the way she tested Serena Williams in the quarter-finals of the US Open but rued her inability to be more clinical after losing to the world number one. With a score of 25-4 in unforced errors, it’s easy to see why Halep won the set. Following the match, she expressed that she needs to cut down on mistakes, per espnW’s Johnette Howard.
“I feel OK”, Williams said. I think that makes me really calm, is the fact that I know I can play so much better and I have to, I know that.
“I knew that I could play a lot better”. That would beat the record of six titles she now shares with Chris Evert, so there are a lot of reasons for her to give it her best shot. Serena Williams gets the only break point of the third set, as she converts her lone break point opportunity over Halep.
There is no one on the women’s tour with a serve more lethal than the six-foot-one (1.86 meters) Pliskova, who has fired off a whopping 439 aces this year.
She deployed her deadly serve – so often Serena’s greatest strength – against her opponent, delivering seven aces, winning 84 per cent of points on her first serve and offering up just one break point. Williams threw away her third time to break and Halep got herself also a third set point but Williams again didn’t allow it as she hit a forehand victor.
Her younger sister Serena, who will turn 35 September 26, has had no such problems.
Serena Williams is still on course for her 23rd Grand Slam title but she was made to work for her place by world No.5, Simona Halep, who literally played out her skin to try and stop the world No.1.
They will be followed by Angelique Kerber against Caroline Wozniacki.
Who will meet in the finals?
Djokovic has never lost to Monfils, defeating him all 12 times they’ve squared off against each other as professionals.
Notable stat: Wozniacki has been to at least the semifinals here four different times, while Kerber has only done it once, in 2011.
Kerber has been on fire this year.
She’ll have to play the same brand of attacking tennis to have a shot against Serena. Two more wins separate Williams from unprecedented greatness.
“I haven’t even gotten that far yet, actually”, Serena said.
Advertisement
Right now, it will take a ideal game from Karolina Pliskova tomorrow or Caroline Wozniacki or Angelique Kerber on Saturday to beat her.
