SYDNEY: Serena Williams survived a scare from France’s Aravane Rezai on Thursday before booking her spot in the Sydney International final against Russian Elena Dementieva.
The Australian Open champion was teetering on the brink of defeat after losing the first set and trailing 5-2 in the second but she raised her game to win 3-6, 7-5 6-4.
“I was lucky to get through today,” American Williams told reporters. “I’m just super mentally tough, I feel like that’s definitely one of my strengths.” While Williams had to dig deep, Dementieva had no real problems winning her semifinal against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.
Dementieva cruised to a 6-3, 6-1 victory at the Olympic tennis center to remain on course to defend her title.
“I was trying to be very aggressive from the beginning of the match,” Dementieva said.
“I didn’t want it to go three sets, because I need to save some energy for the final.”
France were at least assured of a place in the men’s final after Richard Gasquet and Julien Benneteau won their last-eight matches.
Gasquet, who resumed playing this month after being cleared over a positive cocaine test, defeated Italy’s Potito Starace 6-3, 7-6 and Benneteau beat Leonardo Mayer of Argentina 6-4, 6-7, 6-0.
Former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus also reached the semi-finals by beating Australian Lleyton Hewitt 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.
He meets American Mardy Fish who overcame Australia’s Peter Luczak 7-6, 6-2.
Isner stuns Robredo
Meanwhile in Auckland, big-serving American John Isner advanced to the Auckland Open semifinals for the first time with a three-set victory over top seed Tommy Robredo on Thursday.
The 24-year-old Isner, who was knocked out at the quarterfinal stage last year, overpowered the 16th ranked Robredo with 20 aces to run out a 7-6, 3-6, 6-4 winner.
“It was tough... and I certainly had to dig deep,” the popular Isner said of his third three-set victory this week. “Down a break in the first. Down a break in the third. I had to play pretty well to keep my head and that’s what I did.”
A noticeably frustrated Robredo said that while he had broken Isner’s booming serve three times, he still had trouble with a ball that was clocked moving at more than 220 kilometers per hour (137mph).
Isner will now meet Spain’s Albert Montanes in the semi-finals after the eighth seed beat Swiss qualifier Michael Lammer 6-3, 6-3.
By making light work of the 209th-ranked Lammer, Montanes has advanced to the semifinals without having to beat anybody ranked in the top 200 in the world.
France’s Arnaud Clement continued a strong run with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over sixth-seeded Austrian Juergen Melzer and will meet 2008 champion Philipp Kohlschreiber, who beat France’s Marc Gicquel 6-3, 6-1 in the late match, in the final four.
