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Serena battles back to beat Capriati
July 01, 2003 23:29 IST
Top seed Serena Williams dug herself out of trouble against fellow American Jennifer Capriati on Tuesday, winning 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the third time in the last four years.
Capriati was the last player to beat Serena at Wimbledon -- at the same stage in 2001 -- and a repeat looked on the cards when she romped through the first set in 27 minutes against a strangely wayward Serena.
But the defending champion suddenly clicked into gear and after she broke serve with a bludgeoning backhand to lead 3-2 in the second set, the tide began to turn.
She raced through the next six games to lead 3-0 in the decider and, although eighth seed Capriati hung on gamely -- winning one incredible 31-stroke rally when serving to stay in the match -- Serena proved unstoppable.
In a thrilling final game with both players at the peak of their powers, Capriati carved out two break points, netting a forehand on one and being passed on the other.
Serena then clinched victory in one hour 39 minutes as Capriati dragged a forehand into the net with her opponent stranded out of position.
Venus negotiates Davenport test
Venus Williams won the battle of the former champions when she wore down fellow American Lindsay Davenport 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 to stride into the Wimbledon semi-finals.
Fourth seed Venus, the winner here in 2000 and 2001, reached her fourth consecutive semi-final at the All England Club as she finally overpowered Davenport from the baseline to set up a showdown with second seed Kim Clijsters.
Unperturbed by an 80-minute rain break early in the contest, Venus clubbed the 1999 champion from the baseline in the opening set as Davenport's forehand rapidly started to collapse.
Breaking the brittle Davenport serve for the third time in the match, Venus claimed the first set with a blazing forehand crosscourt winner.
But Davenport refused to surrender her title hopes and frustrated her opponent in the second with a flurry of blistering groundstrokes to level the match after Venus floated a service return long.
The world number four, however, kept her nerve in a high-octane final set to seal victory after one hour 27 minutes with a bludgeoning smash.
Clijsters finds form after early scare
Belgium's Kim Clijsters survived a major scare before marching into her first Wimbledon singles semi-final, defeating Silvia Farina Elia 5-7, 6-0, 6-1.
The world number two had only dropped 12 games in reaching the last eight, but she was made to work overtime against a 31-year-old Italian enjoying her best run here on her 12th consecutive appearance.
After squandering three set points on her way to dropping a rain-interrupted first set -- her first of the tournament -- the 20-year-old Clijsters finally got to grips with her cagey opponent and rattled off 12 of the next 13 games to set up a clash with fourth seed Venus Williams.
Farina, who made her Wimbledon debut when Clijsters was eight, had never reached a Grand Slam quarter-final before but she looked far from overawed against the hard-hitting Belgian.
After rain sent the players scuttling for cover at 2-2 in the first set, the Italian returned in determined mood and promptly broke serve.
Clijsters hit back immediately and after serving two booming aces to lead 5-4, she was gifted three set points as the first cracks began to appear in Farina's stubborn resistance.
From 0-40, however, the Italian -- coached by her husband Francesco -- played an inspired game to hold serve, saving one set point after a ferocious baseline rally that drew gasps from an appreciative crowd.
A rattled Clijsters then dumped a routine volley into the bottom of the net to lose her own serve and Farina Elia made no mistake in serving out the set.
But that was as good as it got though for the lady from Rome, the first Italian woman since Laura Golarsa in 1989 to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
She lost her depth and second seed Clijsters, bidding for her first Grand Slam title and the world number one spot, punished her ruthlessly.
With her venomous groundstrokes finally firing, the Belgian sped through the second set in 20 minutes with boyfriend Lleyton Hewitt nodding his approval in the stands.
It was a similar story in the third as Clijsters showed exactly why she has bagged four titles this year and she wrapped up victory in one hour 24 minutes.