Serena sets up Li final as Nadal, Berdych win
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SERENA Williams beat Maria Sharapova for the 15th consecutive time, rallying in both sets for a 6-4, 6-3 victory in the Sony Open semifinals on Thursday.
Williams, seeking a record seventh Key Biscayne title, improved to 16-2 against Sharapova and hasn’t lost to her favorite foil since 2004.
“I have always felt when I’m playing at my best, then it’s hard for people to beat me,” Williams said.
Rafael Nadal could say the same. He advanced to the semifinals by hitting a flurry of forehand winners down the stretch to beat Canadian Milos Raonic 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
The No. 1-ranked Williams will try for a record seventh Key Biscayne title against No. 2 Li Na, who overcame 40 unforced errors to beat Dominika Cibulkova 7-5, 2-6, 6-3. Williams is 10-1 against Li.
The No. 1-ranked Nadal, who is 0-3 in Key Biscayne finals, needs one more win to get there again. His opponent will be No. 7-seeded Tomas Berdych, who advanced by beating Ukraine’s No. 22 Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-4, 7-6 (3). Berdych was the Key Biscayne runner-up in 2010.
Nadal has beaten Czech Berdych 16 times in a row over the past seven years.
Three-time champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia will play in the other semifinal against Japan’s Kei Nishikori, the 20th seed who eliminated Roger Federer on Wednesday.
The No. 1-ranked Williams won with a superior serve and better returns. She hit nine aces and broke five times, helping her rebound from deficits of 4-1 in the first set and 2-0 in the second.
In the second semi-final, Li improved to 7-0 against 11th-ranked Cibulkova.
World No. 2 Li hit two aces but she won 46 of 79 first serve points in the 2-hour, 20-minute match.
The Chinese veteran won despite hitting six double faults and taking just eight of 29 points on her second serve.
Li is 3-0 against Cibulkova this year. She beat Cibulkova in the Australian Open final in January to claim her second career grand slam title, and downed the Slovakian again at Indian Wells earlier this month.
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