Top seed Serena Williams overpowered Victoria Azarenka in an absorbing Wimbledon quarter-final yesterday to set up a semi-final showdown with Maria Sharapova.
The American had to recoverfrom a set down to win 3-6 6-2 6-3 and move just two wins away from holding all four grand slam titles concurrently – the so-called Serena Slam she also achieved in 2002-03.
The 33-year-old was second best in the first set against the Belarussian former world number one on Centre Court, but she found an extra gear to dominated thereafter.
Three consecutive aces at 4-2 in the third set moved her to within a game of victory and although 23rd seed Azarenka hung on and threatened to break back, Williams would not be denied and stayed on course for a 21st grand slam title.
“It was fun out there and I saw Victoria smiling as well, we both really enjoyed it,” five-times Wimbledon champion Williams said in a TV interview.
Sharapova made it a remarkable 20 victories from 23 grand slam quarter-finals but was pushed all the way by feisty American Coco Vandeweghe before emerging a 6-3 6-7(3) 6-2 winner.
The Russian fourth seed, Wimbledon champion as a 17-year-old in 2004, had not dropped a set in this year’s tournament coming into the last-eight contest.
However, after a relatively untroubled first set on Centre Court, she lost a hugely entertaining second as the two identikit 6ft-plus blondes with matching white visors slugged it out.
In the final set Sharapova quickly seemed to take control with a break in the second game to race to a 3-0 lead but Vandeweghe refused to lay down or ease off and broke back to trail 3-2, again urging the crowd to get behind her as she marched back to her chair.
Sharapova had struggled for consistency all day but put together a run of aggressive, accurate returns together to break again for a 4-2 lead and then landed a rare ace to finish off her next service game to make it 5-2.
This time there was no coming back as Sharapova then broke again to take the match.
Agnieszka Radwanska made her wealth of grasscourt experience count as she dispatched American hope Madison Keys 7-6(3) 3-6 6-3 to reach semi-finals for the third time in four years.
The 2012 runner-up, who at 13 is the highest seed left in the bottom half of the draw, needed six set points to seal the first set while the second set slipped from her grasp after a bouncing net cord handed her 20-year-old rival a break in the eighth game.
Keys produced a 106mph thunderbolt to draw level.
That was one of 12 aces she fired down yesterday.
However, being the tournament’s leading ace lady – with a total of 59 – could not carry her over the finishing line.
Radwanska inched closer to victory by breaking in the eighth game of the decider and finished Keys off with a forehand winner.
She will meet Garbine Muguruza in tomorrow’s semi-final after she became the first Spanish woman in 18 years to reach the semis with a 7-5 6-3 win over Timea Bacsinszky.