Date:08/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/08/stories/2008110851442100.htm

Sport - Tennis

Venus makes semifinals

Doha: Venus Williams defeated her sister 5-7, 6-1, 6-0 to reach the semifinals of the WTA Tour’s season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships, a match Serena Williams called her worst of the year.

“I just couldn’t keep a ball in play,” she said. “Everything was off.”

Venus Williams won on her fifth match point, and is 3-0 in round-robin play of a tournament that features the top eight players. Serena Williams dropped to 1-1, but can still advance to the semifinals if she defeats Elena Dementieva.

The sisters are 9-9 in career matchups. Serena defeated Venus in the US Open quarterfinals en route to the title this year, and Venus won their title match at Wimbledon.

The results: White group: Jelena Jankovic bt Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-6(6), 6-4. Maroon group: Venus Williams bt Serena Williams 5-7, 6-1, 6-0; Elena Dementieva bt Dinara Safina 6-2, 6-4. — Agencies