In what was seen as a true masterclass of her tennis prowess, six-time US Open champion Serena Williams routed Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova 6-3, 6-0 in the first semi-final of the U.S Open Championship 2018. Williams will next play in her 31st Grand Slam, bidding to win her first Major title after giving birth to her daughter last year.
She will face Japan’s Naomi Osaka in the final on Saturday. Osaka defeated American Madison Keys 6-2, 6-4, to advance to her first Major final. In doing so, she became the first Japanese woman in the history of the game to reach a Grand Slam final.
Read: Osaka driven by Williams reward
Osaka defeated Williams earlier in the season at Miami, on the heels of her first career title at Indian Wells. A win on Saturday for Williams — who will be playing her ninth final at the U.S Open — will see her equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Major titles.
A win on Saturday — her ninth final at the US Open — will see Williams equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Major titles.
Sevastova, who was playing her first Grand Slam semifinal, seemed utterly intimidated by the occasion and the person on the other side of the net. She looked threatening only in the first game of the match, when she broke Williams’ serve. It continued to be a typical Serena show from then on, with the American winning 11 of the final 12 games and dropping just seven points in the second set.
After making her comeback barely six months after giving birth, Williams reached the fourth round of the French Open and the finals of Wimbledon this year. She will look to cement her place as the greatest tennis player of all time with another title on Saturday.
Stats from Opta
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