Serena and Venus Williams Set For A Final Show At Australian Open
MELBOURNE, Australia — It was one, two and
three for the ages as Venus and Serena Williams set up another
all-sisters final and Roger Federer ensured he'll contend for another
Australian Open title.
They're calling it Throwback
Thursday at Melbourne Park: three players with a combined 46 Grand Slam
titles and a combined age of 106 advanced to the finals.
Six-time Australian Open
winner Serena Williams overwhelmed Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-2, 6-1 in just
50 minutes in the second of women's semifinals, after Venus Williams
beat fellow American CoCo Vandeweghe 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-3.
The only person standing
between 35-year-old Serena Williams and an Open-era record 23rd Grand
Slam title is 36-year-old Venus Williams, the oldest player to reach an
Australian Open women's final in the modern era. She is the oldest
player since Martina Navratilova at Wimbledon in 1994 to reach a women's
major final anywhere.
"It felt really good because
I felt like it was in my hands to force this Williams final," Serena
Williams said. "Believe it or not, I was feeling a little pressure about
that, but it felt really good to get that win."
At 35, Federer is the oldest man to reach a Grand Slam final since Ken Rosewall made the 1974 U.S. Open final at the age of 39.
United States' Serena Williams makes a forehand return Croatia's Mirjana
Lucic-Baroni during their semifinal at the Australian Open tennis
championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017.
He had a 7-5, 6-3, 1-6, 4-6, 6-3 win in an
all-Swiss semifinal against Stan Wawrinka, who has won three majors —
the Australian in 2014, the French in 2015 and the U.S. Open last year —
in the time since Federer captured the last of his record 17, at
Wimbledon in 2012.
Wawrinka broke his racket
over his knee in the second set. He needed a medical timeout before the
third, came out with his right knee taped, and rallied to force Federer
to five for the first time before double-faulting to give up the vital
break in the sixth game.
Federer, coming back from
six months on the sidelines to rest his injured left knee, made no
mistake in closing out. He will next play Sunday against the winner of
Friday's semifinal between 14-time major winner Rafael Nadal and Grigor
Dimitrov.
"I felt like everything
happened so quickly," Federer said. "It feels amazing. I never, ever in
my wildest dreams thought I was going to be coming this far here in
Australia. It's beautiful."
The women's final on
Saturday night will be the first all-Williams final here since 2003,
when Serena won what Venus has described as a "battle royale."
Returning to her first final
since then in Melbourne was a momentous occasion for Venus Williams,
given her struggles to overcome an energy-sapping illness since being
diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome in 2011. She hasn't been in a Grand
Slam final since losing 2009 Wimbledon to Serena.
"Everyone has their moment
in the sun," she said. "Maybe mine has gone on a while. I'd like to keep
that going. I've got nothing else to do so let's keep it going."
She was exuberant after
clinching her win Vandeweghe on her fourth match point, putting hands up
to her face, almost in disbelief, before crossing her arms over her
heart. She then did a stylish pirouette on the court, smiling broadly,
as the crowd gave her a standing ovation.
Serena Williams' celebration
was more subdued after her lopsided win over 34-year-old Lucic-Baroni,
who was playing her first semifinal at a major since Wimbledon in 1999.
There was a warm embrace for the woman she'd played only twice before —
both times in 1998.
Of all the comeback stories
in the tournament, Lucic-Baroni's return to the top level after so much
time struggling out of the game has captured the most heartfelt
attention. After finishing the semifinal — notable for the record
combined ages of the players at a major — Lucic-Baroni took a selfie
with her cell phone on the court before waving and leaving Rod Laver
Arena.
Serena Williams said
Lucic-Baroni's comeback served as an inspiration for other players. Her
own sister has also been an inspiration.
"Obviously I was really
proud of Venus — a total inspiration, my big sister," Serena said.
"She's basically my world and my life. I was so happy for her. For us
both to be in the final is the biggest dream come true for us."
United States' Venus Williams makes a forehand return to compatriot Coco
Vandeweghe during their semifinal at the Australian Open tennis
championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017.
Venus Williams has won seven
major titles, but none since Wimbledon in 2008. Her seven-and-a-half
year gap between major finals is the longest for any player in the Open
era. She's also lost six of the eight Grand Slam finals she's played
against Serena, and is 11-16 in their career meetings at tour-level.
The 25-year-old Vandeweghe,
playing her maiden Grand Slam semifinal, was the first player to take a
set off Venus Williams in the tournament, but then had her serve broken
four times.
Venus Williams said she'd take a winning attitude into the final against her sister, and had nothing to lose.
"She's my toughest opponent —
nobody has ever beaten me as much as Venus has," Serena Williams
acknowledged. But, "I just feel like no matter what happens, we've won
... a Williams is going to win this tournament."
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