Venus wins battle of Williams

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:19

Friday’s semi-final was the 19th professional meeting between the sisters with Venus’ 6-1 2-6 7-6 (7/3) victory giving her a 10-9 advantage – the first time she has led in the head-to-head series since 2002.

World number one Serena has been the form player this season, winning the Australian Open title, while Venus surprisingly lost in the second round in Melbourne to Carla Suarez Navarro.

But it was the elder sister, seeded sixth this week, who began in top form, racing out to a one-set lead.

Matches between the pair are rarely one-sided, though, and Serena came storming back to level.

The decider was a tight affair with Serena breaking first to forge ahead but this time it was Venus’ turn to fight back as the third set went to a tie-break.

Venus immediately took the initiative, racing out to a 4-1 lead, and she did not falter as she sealed her spot in Saturday’s showpiece.

Razzano continued her incredible week by reaching the biggest final of her career.

The Frenchwoman, ranked 58th in the world, had already beaten world number two Dinara Safina and number five Vera Zvonareva, and she had little trouble brushing aside 16th seed Kaia Kanepi.

The Estonian broke in the first game but from then on Razzano took over, winning eight games in a row before easing to a 6-1 6-2 victory.

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