Top seed Serena Williams battled her way past Kiki Berten’s 7-6(7), 6-4, to book a showdown with Garbine Muguruza in the final of the French Open.
It was unclear if the semifinal meeting between Williams and Bertens would finish without a retirement as Bertens carried a calf injury into the match. Regardless of the injury woe, the match went on as Williams recovered from a slow start to ease her way into the final at Roland Garros.
Reminiscent of her roller coaster quarter-final triumph, Williams got off to a sluggish start with a series of errors. Three unforced errors combined with a double fault, granted the underdog the early break as she moved ahead 2-0. The inconsistencies of the world No.1 continued throughout the first set as Bertens produced a series of impressive forehand winners to maintain the lead. On the verge of dropping the opening set, Williams saved a set point before breaking back to level 5-5.
The closeness between both players in the opening set resulted in a thrilling tiebreak, which consisted of 11 breaks of service. The world No.1 was on course to take the tiebreaker 7-5 but failed to convert after a poor approach at the net. Saving her second set point of the set, Williams eventually closed proceedings out with a forehand down the line, her 22nd winner of the set.
Surviving the opening set, Williams still had a lot of work to do after she was broken to love by a Courageous bertens at the start of the second. Unfortunately for Dutch player, the top seed had an answer to every move she made. Winning four out of the next five games, Williams progressed to two games away from her 27th grand slam final, leading the match 7-6(7), 4-3. Displaying a sharp increase in her form compared to her tricky first set, the 34-year-old was dictating a tiring Bertens around the court. Nevertheless, closing the match out was still a tough task for the top seed. Three match points came and went as she was forced to serve the match out. The dominant power of Williams was in full force as a backhand into the net from Bertens handed her match point No.4, which she finally converted to seal the win.
“Today I played very well, she (Bertens) also played very well. I am very happy,” Williams said during her on court interview.
Williams now has the chance to equal Steffi Graf’s record of 22 grand slam titles if she wins one more match at Roland Garros. Looking ahead to tomorrow’s final, the defending champion is hoping that she will have the French crowd on her side.
“It’s very important for me, if I win I would be very happy, if I lost, I don’t know,” Williams said about the upcoming final.
“I got to be relaxed for the final and I hope the public is with me. For me it is important that the public is with me.”
Garbine Muguruza next
In Saturday’s final Williams will play the in-form Garbine Muguruza. The Spaniard fired 20 winners during her 6-2, 6-4, win over former French Open runner-up Sam Stosur.
The world No.4 started her match against the Australian impressively by racing to a 4-0 lead before claiming the set after 33 minutes on the court. There was greater resistance from Stosur in the second set as Muguruza dropped her service twice, including when she was serving for the match at 5-3. Despite the late-match blip, Muguruza moved to her maiden French Open final after a forehand from her opponent went into the net.
¡A LA FINAL DE @rolandgarros!! ¡HACIENDO HISTORIA @GarbiMuguruza! ¡ENORME! 👏🏼💥 https://t.co/PQkr6cUuIu
— Mutua Madrid Open (@MutuaMadridOpen) 3 June 2016
Muguruza is the first Spanish woman to reach the final at the event since Conchita Martinez in 2000. She will now play in her second grand slam final after last year’s Wimbledon Championships.
“Well, I think it’s normal, it is always a difficult moment and I really wanted to win. It was a combination of her playing well and me being nervous,” Muguruza said about the roller coaster ending to her match.
Muguruza has played Williams in a grand slam on four previous occasions, losing in three of them. Her only win over the world No.1 occurred at Roland Garros when she defeated the American in the second round of the 2014 tournament. Looking ahead to her showdown with Williams, the 22-year-old will try to not let her emotions get the better of her.
“I think the emotions are sometimes bad, you just have to prepare yourself, be calm and play without regrets.” She concluded.
Regardless of the winner on Saturday, history will be made. Williams has the chanced of winning her 22nd major title, leveling Graf, whilst Muguruza could become the first Spanish woman to win a grand slam title since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1998.
