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Serena Williams, Jennifer Brady  reach Aussie Open semis

Arthur Kapetanakis | February 17, 2021


Serena Williams and Jennifer Brady are one win apiece away from an all-U.S. women's singles title match at the 2021 Australian Open. On Wednesday night in the U.S. (Thursday in Melbourne), both women will take to Rod Laver Arena with an opportunity to make that a reality, starting at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN2. While Williams is seeking her record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title, Brady is seeking her first.

 

Williams, who put on one of her best performances in recent years to power past No. 2 seed Simona Halep in the quarters, will open the semifinal slate against No. 3 seed Naomi Osaka. Brady, who emerged from an all-American quarterfinal against good friend Jessica Pegula, faces Karolina Muchova. 

 

The Serena-Osaka matchup will be the fourth of their career, with Osaka's 2018 US Open victory the lone previous major encounter. Each of their previous three matches, split 2-1 in favor of the Japanese, was decided in straight sets, with no set closer than 6-4. All of their meetings have come on outdoor hard courts. For Brady and Muchova, it will be a second career meeting, after the Czech won a third-set tiebreak to defeat the American on the clay courts of Prague in 2019.

 

For Serena, the quarterfinal victory over Halep again showcased her improved movement on the court, as she dominated the world No. 2 Romanian in rallies both short and long in a 6-3, 6-3 victory. In rallies of nine-plus shots, where Halep might have expected to have an edge, the American won 14 of 20 points, good for 70%. In securing the decisive break in set two, Williams won consecutive rallies of 20 and 12 balls, drawing an error from her typically steady opponent both times.

 

"The summer of 1926 was the last time I felt that," she joked of her ownership of long rallies. "I'm good at rallying and I have to embrace the things I'm good at. I'm good at playing power, I'm good at hitting a hundred balls.  And that's one thing that's unique about me that I just need to kind of accept and embrace and just be good at both."

 

Offensively, Serena was equally sharp, cracking 24 winners in the one-hour, 21-minute contest. But both she and coach Patrick Mouratoglou have keyed on improved movement and defense as critical the 39-year-old's run to the final four. For Serena, it's simply a case of getting back to old ways.

 

"Movement has always been one of my strengths, and so it's actually more natural for me to move than for me not," she explained. "So it was just kind of, like, 'Oh, that's how I used to move,' so it's pretty good. I'm happy that I'm doing that again and that I put it back into my game.  I think I was more focused on other things and not focused on something that is actually a strength of mine, has always been a strength of mine, and I had to refocus on that."

 

In the semifinals vs. Osaka, with no shortage of firepower on either side of the net, that improved movement could be the difference in what projects to be a match of razor-thin margins.

 

In the draw's top half, the No. 22 seed Brady battled back from behind to defeat Pegula after dropping a set for the first time in the tournament. After misfiring early with her power game, she recalibrated to take control in sets two and three, ultimately walking off with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory.

 

"I found my way in the second set, just playing more aggressive on my terms," she reflected. "I think towards the end of the third I was just really dialed in, tunnel vision, just kept going for my shots, playing aggressive."

 

The 25-year-old's early-round efficiency may have paid dividends late, as Pegula appeared to tire in her second consecutive three-setter. (She went the distance to upset No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina in the fourth round.)

 

"I felt really good out there physically," Brady said, noting that she felt her opponent's fitness drop.

 

Brady will now compete in her second Grand Slam semifinal, after she fell to Osaka in three sets at that stage the 2020 US Open. Featuring just two breaks of serve across three sets, it was one of the highest-quality matches of the pandemic-shortened season. This time, the American enters as the favorite against her No. 25-seeded opponent, who she described as "crafty" and "athletic," with an all-court game. Muchova will enter full of confidence herself, after storming back from a set and a break down to dismiss world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty on her home turf, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, winning 12 of the match's final 15 games.

 

Between Brady, Serena and Osaka, three of the four US Open semifinalists are through to the final four in Melbourne. (Victoria Azarenka was the fourth in New York.) Muchova, a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon in 2019, reached the Round of 16 last summer in New York.

 

Also through to the Aussie Open semifinal stage are defending men's doubles champions Rajeev Ram (USA) and Joe Salisbury (Great Britain). The No. 5 seeds will continue their title defense against Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares after a day off. Ram is also through to the mixed doubles semis, alongside Barbora Krejcikova (Czech Republic). The 36-year-old American has dropped just one set in each competition, across a total of four men's doubles wins and three mixed victories.

 

For complete Australian Open draws, schedules and results, visit the official tournament website.

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