Venus sends world No. 1 Kerber packing
Print Edition
VENUS Williams whacked a winner on her fifth match point, then spun and threw a celebratory fist toward her father, who watched from the front row while munching popcorn. The taste of victory never gets old.
Venus and her dad have been coming together to Miami Open in Key Biscayne for 20 years, and she moved a step closer to her first title in the event since 2001 by beating top-ranked Angelique Kerber 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday night in the Miami Open quarterfinals.
It was Williams’ 15th career win against a No. 1 player, but her first since 2014.
Four-time runner-up Rafael Nadal advanced to the men’s semifinals by beating American Jack Sock 6-2, 6-3. Nadal’s opponent today will be Fabio Fognini, who became the first unseeded player in 10 years to reach the men’s semis when he beat 2016 runner-up Kei Nishikori 6-4, 6-2.
The tournament was once known as the Williams Open because of the way Venus and Serena dominated. Now Venus, seeded 11th and 36 years old, is in the semifinals for the first time in seven years.
Venus’ next opponent will be No. 10 Johanna Konta, who became the first British woman to reach a semifinal here by beating No. 3 Simona Halep 3-6, 7-6 (7), 6-2. “She’s living the dream,” Williams said. “I’ve got a dream too.”
Williams has enjoyed a resurgence this year, reaching the Australian Open final before losing to her sister. She took charge against Kerber when the German double-faulted on the final two points of the opening set, and broke serve twice more early in the second set to pull away. Kerber saved four match points before Williams closed out the victory with a backhand winner.
It was a matchup of offense against defense, with Williams the more aggressive player, charging the net often.
Nadal is playing Key Biscayne for the 13th time, making it his longest title drought at any tournament. He committed only 12 unforced errors against the No. 13-seeded Sock, rallied from a break down in the second set and improved his lifetime record against Americans to 60-9.
Fognini, 29, matched his best showing in an ATP Masters 1000 event. By beating the No. 2-seeded Nishikori, Fognini improved to 9-44 against top-10 players, and he became the first Italian man to reach a semifinal.
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