TENNIS:WORLD NUMBER one Serena Williams marched into the semi-finals of the WTA Championships in Doha yesterday with a comfortable win over Elena Dementieva
Her 6-2 6-4 victory completed a 100 per cent record for the American in Maroon Group and confirmed her as the first player through to the last four at the season-ending showpiece.
Teenager Caroline Wozniacki is also undefeated on her debut at the event after beating Russian stand-in Vera Zvonareva in a White Group clash that at times resembled a hospital casualty department rather than a tennis match.
The 19-year-old Dane eventually won 6-0 6-7 6-4 but played the last four points virtually on one leg. She was in tears after suffering agonising cramps in her heavily-bandaged left thigh and could barely hobble to the net to shake hands.
Zvonareva, who replaced fellow Russian Dinara Safina who withdrew with a back injury, was also in the wars, needing treatment in the second set as blood oozed from her nose.
“I have absolutely no idea how I pulled it through, but Im very happy about it, said surprise US Open runner-up Wozniacki, who may still need to beat Serbias Jelena Jankovic today to clinch a semi-final spot.”
“I’m just going to do everything that physio and the doctors are saying, drinking a lot of fluids, eat some good food, stretch, get some massage, get some ice massage, take a salt bath, everything.”
There were no such dramas for Serena who recovered from an early service break to win seven games in a row against Dementieva, a player she had lost to three times this year.
Dementieva’s cause was not helped by 10 double faults but the Olympic champion can still reach the semi-finals for the second year in succession by beating Svetlana Kuznetsova in her final group match today.
“It feels good to be through because Ive never really done well in this round-robin format,” said Serena, who won the tournament in 2001 when it was a conventional knockout draw.
“Tomorrow I’m going to sleep all day because Ive played every day so far here and I’m really tired.”
Wozniacki, who needed a minute under three hours to subdue Victoria Azarenka on Wednesday, looked set for a quick victory when she raced through the opening set against Zvonareva.
Things got worse for Zvonareva in the second set when she developed a nose bleed but, like a boxer with a cut, she suddenly came out fighting and clawed back a 5-2 deficit. A brutal brutal baseline struggle developed with both players scampering across the baseline to retrieve lost causes on a breathless night in the Qatari capital.
