Venus reaches semis in Stuttgart

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:04

Third-ranked Safina came into this hardcourt tournament having reached the final in seven of her previous nine events, winning four titles and going 41-5 over that span.

But Williams, a former world number one with 37 career titles and seven Grand Slam championships, was far from intimidated during her first encounter with the the upstart Russian.

The 28-year-old American never faced a break point during the 77-minute match and, after taking the first set, she roared to a 4-0 lead in the second

Williams has seen limited action this campaign, but saved her best effort for Wimbledon, where she beat sister Serena Williams in the final to claim the title for the second straight year and fifth time overall.

Safina took the title at Tokyo last weekend and had won 10 of her last 11 matches prior to Friday’s setback. Her only defeat during that span came at the hands of Serena in at the US Open semi-finals.

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