Serena, Azarenka return to the U.S. Open final

Sep 07, 2013 Sports

USA Today – NEW YORK — There is dominance, and then there is Serena Williams.
Plenty of talented players have zipped through major tennis tournaments, seldom dropping sets and winning most of their service games. Few have reached a final this way.

Serena Williams reacts after defeating Li Na of China 6-0, 6-3 in the U.S. Open semifinals.(Photo Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY)

Williams advanced to tomorrow’s U.S. Open final after a most commanding six-match stretch, capped by yesterday’s 6-0, 6-3 win against China’s Li Na. Williams has been broken just twice the entire tournament. She has not dropped a set. Even the net cord seems to favor her.
From the second set in the round of 16 through the second set of her semifinal win over Na Friday, Williams won 24 consecutive games — the equivalent to four straight 6-0 sets.
Her quarterfinal and semifinal box scores require a second glance; they’re more typical for opening-round play than second-week action in New York, especially when your semifinal opponent is the sixth-ranked player in the world.
Williams took the first set from Li yesterday afternoon in just 29 minutes, and Li didn’t get on the scoreboard until the eighth game of the match. (The Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd gave her a round of applause.) When Li broke Williams to take an early 2-1 lead in the second set, Williams broke right back — and won the next five games. After Li saved five match/break points, Williams served out the match.
Williams’ win sets up a No. 1 vs. No. 2 final tomorrow and also a rematch of last year’s championship match. Williams will defend her title against Victoria Azarenka, who struggled at times but held on to beat Flavia Pennetta, 6-4, 6-2, earlier yesterday. Azarenka has beaten Williams twice this year on hardcourts.
But Williams should enter tomorrow’s match as the overwhelming favorite, particularly fitting after the convincing way she punched her ticket yesterday. Williams is 31 years old and playing arguably the best tennis of her career — a scary thought considering she already has 16 Grand Slam singles titles to her name.