Australian Open 2015: Day 11 Results, Highlights and Scores Recap from Melbourne
Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova booked their tickets for the 2015 Australian Open women's final with relative ease on Thursday, dispatching of Madison Keys and Ekaterina Makarova, respectively, in straight sets.
The duo entered the tournament as the top-seeded players and have lived up to expectations Down Under, including dominant showings on Thursday. Sharapova easily took the upper hand in the rallies against Makarova. Williams' service game was superb, and she took full advantage of Keys' inexperience.
Andy Murray defeated Tomas Berdych in four sets to book his spot in the men's final, taking on the winner of Friday's clash between Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka. Here are the full results of Thursday's matches:
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| Maria Sharapova (2) | 6-3, 6-2 | Ekaterina Makarova (10) |
| Serena Williams (1) | 7-6(5), 6-2 | Madison Keys |
| Andy Murray (6) | 6-7(6), 6-0, 6-3, 7-5 | Tomas Berdych (7) |
Andy Murray Impresses Against Tomas Berdych, Books Spot in Final
Murray put together an excellent performance to beat Berdych 6-7(8), 6-0, 6-3, 7-5 in the first men's semi-final on Thursday, surviving an intense encounter to set up a date with the winner of the match between top seed Novak Djokovic and defending champion Stan Wawrinka.
The Scot struggled in the first set but found a way to keep his opponent from advancing to the net throughout the rest of the match, using clean groundstrokes to gain an advantage and force Berdych into errors.
As shared by the event's official Twitter feed, he ended the match with an emphatic ace, his 15th of the contest:
Murray had difficulty dealing with Berdych's quick dashes to the net in the opening set, allowing the Czech to convert 20 of 33 net approaches in just six games and the tie-break. Berdych smartly took some heat off his serve and used tons of spin to keep Murray guessing, resulting in the early advantage.
The World No. 6 looked visibly frustrated, and after the match, he admitted to the cameras he was far from happy with his performance:
The second set couldn't have been any more different, however. Murray's serve started clicking, and Berdych couldn't find any rhythm in the rallies. He hit just a single winner, allowing Murray to convert all three break chances and looked completely out of his depth.
The result wasn't surprising, per Telegraph Sport:
The Czech tried to pick up the intensity and play more attacking tennis in the third set, but by this time, Murray was on fire. His serve in particular was a powerful weapon, while he kept the upper hand from the baseline and kept Berdych from stepping into the court.
The fourth set was undoubtedly the best of the match, with each player scoring by playing to their biggest strengths. Berdych forced a break by returning to the net with more frequency, but Murray fought back, erased a set point down 5-4 and forced a break soon after with some fantastic winners from the baseline.
Kim Clijsters was mesmerised:
The actual break came courtesy of a double fault from Berdych, and that moment seemed to break the Czech, who surrendered the next game without much of a fight and bowed out of the tournament in disbelief.
Berdych shouldn't be too disappointed with his performance, however. Murray was simply excellent on Thursday, making the right adjustments after a difficult first set and finding the right tactics to counter the Czech's biggest weapon.
Murray paid tribute to his coach, Amelie Mauresmo, who he believes has done a tremendous job with his game, per The Guardian's Owen Gibson:
The Scot will face his toughest challenge of the tournament in the final, taking on either strong favourite Djokovic, who has breezed through the tournament so far, or defending champion Stan Wawrinka.
Maria Sharapova Eases Past Ekaterina Makarova
The all-Russian semi-final between Sharapova and Makarova turned out to be a one-sided affair on Thursday, with Sharapova beating her compatriot 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the final for a fourth time in Melbourne.
Sharapova controlled her often erratic serve from the start and overwhelmed her opponent in the rallies, relying on powerful strokes from the baseline and finishing the match with 23 winners, according to the event's official website.
The Australian Open's official Twitter feed shared the final score:
The wind played a big part during the first of Thursday's semi-finals, and Sharapova had to make some adjustments after a rough opening game that saw her hit two double faults.
The difficult conditions appeared to impact Makarova's game more, however, as the 26-year-old couldn't keep her groundstrokes under control. She quickly gave up two break points and failed to capitalise on her own chances, converting just one of six break chances.
After a slight hiccup in the first set, Sharapova powered to a 6-3 advantage in a matter of minutes, and the second set was even more one-sided. The 27-year-old frequently stepped into the court, limiting unforced errors and cruising to the win. Sports Illustrated's Jon Wertheim acknowledged Makarova simply couldn't hang with her experienced opponent:
Sharapova hadn't made the final of the Australian Open since 2008, when the Russian star went on to beat Ana Ivanovic. As shared by the event's official Twitter feed, she often wondered throughout the years what it would be like if she ever returned:
The world No. 2 looked sharp in the rallies but ended up with seven double-faults, a cause for concern against the powerful Williams, who is one of the best in the world at stepping into the court on returns.
If Sharapova can limit mistakes on serve and keep the court as wide as possible on rallies, she has a chance of getting past the top seed and winning her second title in Melbourne.
Serena Williams Powers Through Teen Sensation Madison Keys
Keys showed the world she's on track to join the group of elite players currently dominating the women's circuit but ultimately fell short of upsetting top-seeded Williams on Thursday, losing 7-6(5), 6-2.
Unforced errors proved to be the key difference, as the 19-year-old ended up with 39 in total, compared to just 16 for Williams, via Ausopen.com.
According to the event's official Twitter feed, Serena will be the oldest WTA contender to play in the final when she meets Sharapova:
Power ruled supreme in Thursday's second semi-final, with the duo trading blows early and often. Both ended up with double-digit aces, and the teenager more than held her own in the rallies during the first set, impressing tennis journalist Carole Bouchard in the process:
Williams' experience showed in the tiebreak, however, as Keys made crucial errors at the most inopportune times and fell 7-5 to give up the first set.
Visibly shaken, Keys couldn't keep up her excellent performance in the second set, allowing Williams to run out to a 5-1 lead in a hurry. She also appeared to be suffering from a thigh injury but refused to give up and survived several match points to keep herself in the contest.
After fighting back from seven match points to win the game for 5-2, she surrendered the next and the match. A big hug between both contenders followed, and Williams didn't hide her admiration for the youngster in her post-match comments, via The New York Times' Christopher Clarey:
Williams had to battle harder than Sharapova on Thursday, but judging the head-to-head between the two top seeds, the world No.1 won't be worried going into the final, per SNY.tv's Adam Zagoria:
The 33-year-old is playing with plenty of power and patience, overwhelming her opponents from the baseline and using her first serve to devastating results. Sharapova's athleticism will give her a chance, but based on Thursday's showings, Williams will enter the final as the favourite for the title.
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