First time semifinalist, Elena Vesnina stood no chance as Serena Williams played one of her greatest matches to reach her ninth final at the Wimbledon Championships. The American finished off the Russian in only 48 minutes which makes this the shortest semifinal in the history of the tournament. Vesnina did a lot of mistakes in a day when Serena Williams was determined to play her best. The Russian just won two games in the straight set match and only was able to take three points off William’s serve in the whole match.
Early breaks give Williams a head start
Vesnina showed her nerves from the beginning as she did four unforced errors to lose the break in the opening game of the set. Serena Williams opened her first service game with an ace and unlike the Russian she managed to hold to lead 2-0. Not even two aces in one game could help Vesnina who once again was broke giving an extended lead to Williams 3-0. The American was unstoppable playing probably her best match of the tournament.
She had Vesnina running all over the court to eventually finish the points at the net. Again, the American had no problem to hold her serve and lead 4-0. It was a different story for Vesnina who wasn’t giving a great performance like in her quarterfinal match, the Russian was struggling to keep her serve and has yet to be on the scoreboard. After facing and saving another break point, Vesnina finally made it to the scoreboard when she held.
However, Williams was not slowing down firing three aces that helped her be up 5-1. The most erratic game in the set from Williams happened while Vesnina was serving. Williams did four unforced errors to give another hold to the Russian who still was two breaks down. The defending champion now had to serve out the first and she did as she closed the set at 6-2 with an ace.
Serena Williams doesn't lose a point on her serve as she reaches another Wimbledon final
After a terrible start in the first set, the Russian had to start with a hold but Williams’ brilliance didn’t allow her to do such as she went on to get broken. The serve of the American was on fire as she hit two aces on her route to consolidate the break and lead 2-0. There wasn’t much the Russian could do to stop Williams as the defending champion was returning everything at full speed. Vesnina lost again her serve after hitting a double fault on break point. Between the mistakes of her opponent and her powerful serve, Williams was not struggling at all as she held to love for the second time in a row.
In her third service game of the set Vesnina faced two break points and with the help of one mistake from Williams was able to save one, but the American then hit a forehand winner to claim the third break in a row and serve for a place in the final. Williams ended the match in style with a forehand volley winner. It was an outstanding win for the world number one who won in just 48 minutes which marks as the shortest Wimbledon semifinal. A staggering performance as Williams only lost three points on her serve in all the match.
Angelique Kerber awaits in the final
A rematch of the Australian Open final will take place now at the Wimbledon final as Serena Williams will take on Angelique Kerber. This will be their eighth meeting, although, Williams leads the series 5-2 their last meeting happened at another Grand Slam final where Kerber prevailed in three sets to claim her first major title. This is also the first time they will play on grass.