Serena storms into seventh Australian Open final

Image
IANS Melbourne
Last Updated : Jan 28 2016 | 12:13 PM IST

Top seed Serena Williams raced through her Australian Open tennis semi-final against No.4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska, clinching a 6-0, 6-4 victory with a flurry of aces here on Thursday.

The American heads into her seventh Australian Open final having maintained her perfect semi-final record in Melbourne (7-0) and without dropping a set through her first six matches.

But the World No.1 was never more dominant than she was on Thursday, hitting 18 aces to only four unforced errors in the opening set alone (finishing with 42 winners), allowing Radwanska only seven points in a 20-minute rout.

"I'm really excited to be in another final; it kind of blows my mind. I just feel like I'm playing the best I can and I can't believe I'm in the final!" the 21-time Grand Slam champion said after the match.

"Physically, I'm feeling a lot better, and mentally I needed that break after the US Open. But I didn't think I'd be doing so much, so fast; so thank you so much for all of your support," she added, addressing the crowd.

A former World No.2, Radwanska pulled up more soundly in the second set, levelling proceedings at 3-3 after falling behind an early break. It only pushed Williams to produce her best tennis in the final game - which she opened with three of the eight aces she hit on the day.

"I love it in Australia; it's the only tournament that I play that if I lose early, I still hang out," Serena said.

"Sometimes I'm on the last flight back out to the US. It's just a fun place to be and the crowd has always been really awesome for me. Everyone was nervous for me that I was taking four months off, but this is a big year for me, and I wanted to improve and do better. That's what I did."

*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Jan 28 2016 | 12:02 PM IST

Next Story