Wednesday 6 July 2016 06:37, UK
Venus Williams will face Angelique Kerber in the Wimbledon semi-finals after overcoming Yaroslava Shvedova 7-6 (7-5) 6-2.
The 36-year-old remains on course for a possible final against younger sister Serena after coming through her quarter-final against the unseeded Shvedova.
Her opponent will be Australian Open champion Kerber, who took advantage of timely unforced errors from Simona Halep to win 7-5 7-6 (7-2).
It was the first time Williams had faced Shvedova, and looked like it might be a potential upset.
After taking the first set to a tie-break, Shvedova broke early to claim a 5-2 lead. However she lost her nerve, firing wide, and Williams took advantage, mounting a comeback to reel off five straight points to take the tie-break and the set.
The second set proved more straightforward for the seven-time Grand Slam champion, who twice broke Shvedova and opened up a 5-1 lead, before finishing the contest on her own serve.
Thursday's semi-final will be Williams' first in a Grand Slam in six years, and she will take on an in-form Kerber who is yet to drop a set at this summer's championships.
Both Kerber and Halep struggled in the first set, which contained nine breaks of serve, and Halep was forced to wait until the 10th game of the match to win a service game.
An impressive baseline display kept the Romanian in the match as she broke back three times. However, it was Kerber who began to dictate play, manoeuvring her opponent across the court. At times when Halep came on the attack, the German's defence enabled her to ride the wave of pressure take the first set 7-5.
Both players continued to attack from the baseline, with neither able to break the deadlock. Kerber's powerful forehand was countered by Halep's presence at the net, and the second set went to a tie-break.
Unforced errors undid all the good work Halep had done in getting herself back into the set. From 1-1, four wayward shots derailed the fifth seed. A fortuitous shot that ricocheted off the net gave Kerber four match points, but she only needed one, emerging victorious and into a second Wimbledon semi-final.
