Serena Williams vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova: Score, Reaction for 2016 Wimbledon
Serena Williams is into the semi-finals at Wimbledon once again, as she breezed past Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court on Tuesday.
Having dazzled in her recent outings, the reigning champion is well on course for what’d be a remarkable seventh title at SW19. The 34-year-old played with conviction in the quarter-final, and in a draw that’s opened up by some surprise eliminations, she cemented her status as the big favourite to take the title in Saturday’s final.
Williams will meet Elena Vesnina in the semi-final. Sister Venus Williams or Angelique Kerber face off in the second semi after wins earlier in the day.
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Ahead of this one, the WTA Insider Twitter feed summed up the magnitude of the challenge facing the underdog:
At Centre Court, Williams is a force to be reckoned with too, especially given the swagger with which she hammered Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-0 in the final set of her previous match. Pavlyuchenkova needed to be on it from the very off.
The Russian is a very powerful player, and she used that asset to her advantage early on, happy to exchange with the champion in the early games.
On the other side of the net, Williams did seem to struggle for rhythm in the nascent stages, although as noted by the Live Tennis Twitter feed, there was a sense she was slowly finding her groove:
"Still playing with that calm-before-the-storm air about her, but Serena smashes through a love hold. 2-2. Nice game. pic.twitter.com/Ucb43eY6Tt
— Live Tennis (@livetennis) July 5, 2016"
After eight games on serve, the American pounced in the ninth. There were some sloppy points from Pavlyuchenkova, and Williams grasped the first of three break points to move 5-4 in front. From there, she served out the first set with an ominous assurance.
As noted by ESPNTennis, the top seed’s first serve was proving to be a major asset, as she lost just two points on it in the opening stanza. Williams also smashed an impressive 16 winners. ESPNTennis added that the odds of a Pavlyuchenkova victory were pretty slim at this juncture:
"The world No.1 is 264-8 at Grand Slams when winning the 1st set, 73-2 at #Wimbledon. #ESPNTennis pic.twitter.com/lXW4bp93i4
— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) July 5, 2016"
The 21st seed started the second set well, though, getting through a deuce game in the opener in the second set. She held to love with her second service game, moving 2-1 in front and showing some lovely diversity in her play.
Pavlyuchenkova even started to apply some pressure to the Williams serve.
The 21-time Grand Slam winner continued to grind out games on her own serve, though, with the second set moving on to 4-4 and the point when the Russia lost her cool in the opening stanza.
Williams sensed blood again, pouncing on mistakes from her opponent and snatching the first of two break points in the ninth game.
It left the American with the chance to serve out the contest. She'd been supreme with the ball in hand all day, and it was fitting to see Williams smash an ace on the second of two match points to round this one off.
Here is the moment when she clinched the win, per the Wimbledon Twitter feed:
Afterwards, the top seed was asked about the prospect of playing her sibling in the final. "We (her and Venus) don't really talk too much about it but we are playing doubles later so we are just happy to be in the semi-finals," she said, per BBC Sport. "It will be great (if they are both in final)."
Williams has looked imperious in her last two matches, and she typically comes into her own at this stage of a Grand Slam tournament.
With no Garbine Muguruza or Simona Halep in contention, a 22nd major title is there for the taking for the champion now—a triumph that would put her level with the great Steffi Graf.
Provided she continues to showcase the same standards and patented ruthlessness on the big points, there isn't a competitor left in the field who can halt her charge for glory.
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