Australian Open 2021 Results: Thursday Bracket Winners, Scores and Top Stats

The much-anticipated battle between Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams felt more like a coronation than a hotly contested semifinal match at the 2021 Australian Open.

"I don't know if there's any little kids out here today, but I was a little kid watching her play," Osaka said about Williams in her post-match interview. "And just to be on the court playing against her, for me, is a dream."

No. 3 Osaka was anything but childlike as she routed Williams in straight sets, knocking the most celebrated female tennis player of all-time out of the tournament.

"I felt like I just started making way too much unforced errors because I was worried about what she would do if I were to hit a soft ball," Osaka told reporters after the match. "When it was like 2-0, I was just telling myself to control what I can control and try to play within myself instead of thinking about what she would do or anything like that."

Williams was emotional after her loss, leaving a post-match press conference in tears. The legendary competitor fell short of capturing Grand Slam championship number 24 in a match where she, ironically, amassed 24 unforced errors.

When asked if she may have been saying goodbye when she acknowledged the fans when leaving the court in Melbourne, Williams told reporters, "If I ever say farewell, I wouldn't tell anyone. So..."

Osaka will meet her 2020 U.S. Open semifinal opponent, American Jennifer Brady, in the final.

Women's Scores

No. 22 Jennifer Brady def. No. 25 Karolina Muchova, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4

No. 3 Naomi Osaka def. No. 10 Serena Williams, 6-3, 6-4

Brady earned a grueling, three-set win over Karolina Muchova to cash her ticket to the final.

The American said in her post-match interview that she felt a bit flat: "I was super excited, but at the same time I was pretty flat-footed. My legs felt fresh, but at the same time they just weren't moving. I felt like I was stuck in the mud. I didn't really pick up my intensity until the third set."

Brady will have to shake off that feeling in time for the final. The last time the two competed on a stage as grand as the Australian Open, Osaka knocked off the Pennsylvanian in a three-set match that included a tough first-set tiebreaker.

"I think it'll be a really tough match. Obviously she's won a few Grand Slams. We had a tough match at the U.S. Open in the semifinals. I think she even said that it was one of her top two matches, which was a little bit unfortunate for me at the time," Brady said.

According to Tennis.com, a win for Brady would make her the first former college player since 1979 (Barbara Jordan) to win a major tennis event.

Men's Scores

No. 1 Novak Djokovic def. Aslan Karatsev, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2

Novak Djokovic sailed to a victory over qualifier Aslan Karatsev of Russia, earning his ninth trip to the Australian Open final.

"This is the best I've felt in the entire tournament," the Serb said post-match. Djokovic previously struggled with an oblique injury that had some questioning his status for the tournament.

He outclassed Karatsev from the start, hitting 30 winners and 17 aces in the one-sided match.

The world's No. 1 will play either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Daniil Medvedev in the final.