Can anyone stop her? Venus Williams extended her 2010 winning streak to 15 matches on Thursday afternoon with a 63 64 victory over Marion Bartoli in the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open.Williams, the No.3 seed at the $4.5-million tournament, had faced the No.13-seeded Bartoli twice before, winning in the Wimbledon final in 2007 and losing in the Stanford final last year; this time it was more like that encounter at the All-England Club, with the American never really getting into too much trouble, apart from a brief lapse that saw her trail 3-1 in the second set.
Williams' serve seemed to be the biggest difference, and she made some impressive opening and closing statements - she won the first game of the match at love on serve, then served the match out at love too, including three winners - two aces from the deuce side and one volley winner.
"I always enjoy playing here," Williams said. "I've always had good results. I've usually gone pretty deep and I'm really pleased to be back in the final."
"The main difference was the serve. Venus served really well today and I had some really bad service games," Bartoli said. "Honestly I was pretty pleased with my level in the second set, but she played better. I didn't play so well in the first set and when she got one set up I think it helped her confidence more."
The second semifinal of the day wasn't looking like much of a match, but boy did it turn into one. Holding a point for a 62 40 lead, it looked like Kim Clijsters, seeded No.14, was headed for an easy win; but Justine Henin, a wildcard, began stepping into her shots, eventually winning the set in a tie-break.
The two former No.1s and multiple Grand Slam winners see-sawed in the decider: Henin going up 2-0, Clijsters going up 4-2, Henin evening it at 4-4, each breaking once then each holding once... they would eventually find themselves in a tie-break again, where the drama spiked one last time.
Clijsters lost the first two points of the third set tie-break but rallied to build a 6-3, triple match point lead; Henin saved them all and got to 6-6, but that's when Clijsters conjured up her best again - a stunning backhand drop volley winner to get to her fourth match point then, after a long, tense rally, a huge forehand down the line winner to seal the deal. The two graciously exchanged kisses at the net with the crowd on its feet for a 62 67(3) 76(6) thriller.
"That was a lucky shot. There are no other words for that," Clijsters said of the backhand drop volley. "If we had to play that rally 10 times over again, that's probably the only time I'd make it. It was a split second decision at the time - luckily I chose the right side. I just tried to be really aggressive. Whether it's Justine, Venus or Serena, that's my game. I've been doing that really well so far. Then again, there's nobody who defends as well as Justine."
"She really went for her opportunities," Henin said. "I kept fighting the whole match, so it's difficult to lose this way. But I have to keep something positive about my tournament here. I've had great wins and played some good tennis. I wasn't strong enough tonight, but I can go back home with a lot of good things."
Williams and Clijsters have played 11 times before with Williams leading the series, 6-5.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Singles - Semifinals
(3) Venus Williams (USA) d. (13) Marion Bartoli (FRA) 63 64
(14) Kim Clijsters (BEL) d. (WC) Justine Henin (BEL) 62 67(3) 76(6)
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