INDIAN WELLS, Calif. – Venus and Serena Williams each lost
just three games in the quarterfinals Wednesday to set up a sibling
showdown that is a reprise of last year's Wimbledon semifinals.
|  | | Venus Williams stretches for this forehand, but had no trouble putting away Elena Dementieva in the quarterfinals 6-0, 6-3. |
Venus Williams overpowered Elena Dementieva 6-0, 6-3 in a
rematch of the Olympic final in Sydney, also won by Williams.
Serena Williams, the 1999 U.S. Open champion, avenged last
year's loss at Flushing Meadows to Lindsay Davenport by breezing to
a 6-1, 6-2 victory, her sixth in eight matches against Davenport.
The Williams sisters, who rarely play in the same tournaments
except for the Grand Slams, will face each other for only the sixth
time as pros at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday (ESPN).
Venus, last year's Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion, has beaten
her sister four times, including a 6-2, 7-6 (3) victory at
Wimbledon. Serena's only victory in the sibling rivalry was a 6-1,
3-6, 6-3 decision in Munich, Germany, in 1999.
Although they haven't been matched often, Serena has learned to
deal with playing her sister.
"I don't even remember the first match we played against each
other, but that was tough. Ever since then, it's been a lot easier
for me," Serena said, referring to a 7-6, 6-1 loss to Venus in the
1998 Australian Open.
"I'll just try to stay very focused."
Venus said she will have no trouble getting motivated for the
match.
"It's pretty easy because she's really a great player and a
tough player. If I don't bring my best game, I'll be defeated,"
said Venus, at 20, a year older than her sister.
"At the Wimbledon semifinal, I really wanted to win Wimbledon
so I guess I played a little better that day. She played me in a
final at the Grand Slam Cup (in Munich) and that day I really was
scraping to get one set from her because she was really playing
well.
"So it's easy to focus; if I don't, the result will be
terrible."
The winner of their semifinal on Thursday will face the winner
of the match between No. 1 Martina Hingis and Kim Clijsters in the final on Saturday.
Defending champion Davenport struggled in heat that topped 90
degrees on the stadium court. Her game seemed mostly out of synch,
as she flailed at many of Williams' hard groundstrokes.
Venus Williams, sticking mostly to the baseline on the hot
afternoon, used accurate groundstrokes to move Dementieva side to
side and played patiently until the Russian finally made a mistake. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories |
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Head to head: Venus Williams vs. Serena Williams
Wednesday's results
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Hingis needs tie-break to reach Indian Wells quarters
Davenport, Williams sisters advance at Indian Wells
Serena cruises in pink, Dominkovic shocks Tauziat at Indian Wells
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