In the first evening match scheduled in the Arthur Ashe Stadium, it was a battle between multiple Grand Slam champions between five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. It was Williams, who came out on top, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (2) in a pulsating battle to reach the semifinals at the US Open for the first time since 2010, and for the ninth time in her career. She will face fellow American Sloane Stephens in the last four as she bids to reach a third Grand Slam final in 2017. Williams will also return to the top five in the WTA rankings next Monday for the first time since January 2011.
The two multiple Grand Slam champions both held their opening games to get this mouth-watering quarter-final encounter inside the Arthur Ashe Stadium underway. However, it was the former world number two Petra Kvitova who made her move in Williams’ second service game as the ninth seed committed three untimely double faults to hand her opponent a 2-1 lead.
The 13th seeded Czech was all business as she consolidated the break but the two-time US Open champion responded with a hold to love, and a poor service game from Kvitova handed the break back to Williams. Both players were trading from baseline going toe-to-toe but it was the seven-time Grand Slam winner who won three games in a row leading 4-3.
Kvitova had gone off the boil in the opening set as she trailed 0-40 and the former world one capitalized on the first break point created to her, and she broke for 5-3 with a crushing backhand winner down the line, which gave her the opportunity to serve out for the first set.
The ninth-seeded American, who’s aiming for her first Grand Slam title since winning at Wimbledon in 2008, edged closer to that goal by clinching the first set with a serve to Kvitova’s forehand, which she could not return, taking the first set 6-3 in just 33 minutes.
Kvitova responds to send their sixth encounter to a deciding set
The 13th seed was competing in just her tenth Grand Slam quarterfinal, and Kvitova halted the run of games against her with a good hold of serve. Furthermore, the former world number two was on the comeback trail as she broke Williams’ serve to take a 2-0 lead in the second set.
There was a chance for Williams to break back immediately but she was unable to convert the two break points that she created. Kvitova was upping the decibel levels with a roar of “pojd”, and she took a crucial 3-0 lead in the second set.
There was a halt of play for almost eleven minutes due to rain and the Arthur Ashe Stadium roof was closed. Williams finally got on the scoreboard with a hold to love, and she had another chance to break Kvitova’s serve, however, the Czech saved it and she produced two back-to-back aces, along with a primeval roar, stretching out to an unassailable 4-1 lead.
The two-time US Open champion remained faultless on her serve, and more chances came and went for the seven-time Grand Slam champion but Kvitova was ready in the heat of battle, and at tough moments, her swinging lefty serve got her out of jail and she clinched the game to lead 5-2 with another big roar.
As to be predicted, the two-time Wimbledon champion closed out the second set with ease with Williams’ backhand sailing long taking it 6-3 in an energy-sapping 54 minute set of tennis.
Williams claws her way back to clinch a berth in the semifinals
Kvitova had a good reason to feel to be the favorite in the final set as she led Williams 4-1 in their head-to-head record, and en route to her second Wimbledon title in 2014, they played the match of the tournament in the third round with Kvitova winning 7-5 in the final set.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion won her first game in the final set, and Kvitova responded getting onto the scoreboard early, leveling the score at 1-1. Moreover, despite leading 30-0, it was the 13th seed who drew first blood and took advantage of Wiliams’ frailties on her serve to take a 2-1 lead with two stunning back-to-back cross court backhand winners down the line.
Once again, the American did not give up as she was looking for the immediate break back. However, at 0-40, Kvitova did not give the former world number one a chance to get the break as she served immaculately well. The Czech held onto her serve, nudging the scoreboard once again with an ace out wide to lead 3-1.
However, once again, the pendulum swung in the ninth seed’s favor as she reeled off three games in succession to take a decisive 4-3 lead in the final set with Kvitova playing catch up once more. Under severe pressure and with the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd against the 27-year-old, she produced three aces in stunning fashion to restore parity at 4-4.
Both players did not face another break point in this final set encounter, and the only way to separate these two multiple Grand Slam champions was a final set tiebreak.
The duo both won their first points in the tiebreak to keep the tiebreak at honors even at 1-1, however, it was the two-time US Open champion, who made her first move as her backhand caught Kvitova out, who was looking to pass the American, with her forehand going astray.
Williams stretched out to a comfortable 4-1 lead with the minibreak intact, and the wind had seemingly sailed out of the 13th seed. Her forehand continued to break down, and she committed an untimely double fault, which handed Williams a 6-1 lead, and five match points.
Kvitova saved the first one by virtue of a double fault from the former world number one but the seven-time Grand Slam champion made no mistake on the second one as she served a big second serve out wide to Kvitova’s backhand, clinching a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(2) in two hours and 34 minutes. It was arguably the match of the tournament in both men’s and women’s singles draws.
Williams spoke to Rennae Stubbs, after the match, and she thanked the fans for their support. “I have to say, I felt every single one of you guys behind me, all 23,000, it feels good, it feels amazing and I didn’t want to let you guys down, thank you so much for the support.”
Williams said some nice things about Kvitova after the match in her on-court interview. “First of all, everything that she’s gone through, to go through that is unbelivable, you don’t imagine one day and that’s going to happen, so it’s so wonderful to see her playing amazing. I’m so excited to her seeing well, I’m excited to be able to play her, I’m so fortunate to have won that match, it came down to the wire, and I hope we have more matches like that and I’m wishing her more titles and more winners.
Williams spoke about American tennis and praised her sister Serena, “I think we have to give some credit to Serena, but there was a time in tennis, where all of my rivals were American, Capriati, Davenport and Monica Seles, so I love seeing these young Americans coming up, and playing big and focused, I would love a top four, top five, and we’re playing each other in semifinals, that would be huge.
“When situations gtt hairy, it’s crazy out here, I try to tell myself to enjoy my competition, enjoy the battle, and I think that I was able to do that, thank you guys for staying out here to see me through.”
