Wimbledon 2016: Serena Williams sweeps aside Elena Vesnina to reach final
Friday 8 July 2016 11:44, UK
Serena Williams continued her quest for a 22nd Grand Slam singles title by obliterating Elena Vesnina 6-2 6-0 to reach Saturday's Wimbledon final.
The defending champion needed just 48 minutes to defeat the Russian and move into the final where she will face Angelique Kerber, who denied Venus Williams the chance of a ninth Grand Slam final against her sister.
Kerber was too good in the second semi-final coming through 6-2 6-4 to reach her first Wimbledon final and she will hope to add to her maiden Grand Slam which came with a 6-4 3-6 6-4 win over Serena in Melbourne at the start of the year.
But the younger Williams sister, who defeated Garbine Muguruza in last year's final, will be out for revenge as she targets a seventh title at the All-England Club and a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam.
Steffi Graf's open-era record has been under threat since Serena claimed title 21 in London last year but she has since lost in the semi-final at the US Open and the finals of both the Australian and French this year.
The 34-year-old roared into an unassailable four-game lead in both sets, giving the world No 50 a mountain to climb, as well as firing down the fastest serve of the women's event this year at 123mph.
Vesnina would hold her serve twice before the end of the first set but had no answer for Williams' power, falling behind in just 28 minutes.
As Williams won a fifth straight game in the second set, her dominance was reflected in the statistic with Vesnina winning just five points in the second set.
The champion quickly wrapped up her quickfire victory, finishing two minutes quicker than the previous semi-final record which was set when Venus hammered Dinara Safina in 2009.
The American fired 11 aces, 28 winners and committed just seven unforced errors, breaking serve five times to reach her 28th Grand Slam final.
"I'm very happy. I was really focused today. We've had tough matches before and I knew she could bring it to me on this surface," said Williams.
"It's never easy out there, every point you have to fight for.
"I can't believe I'm in the final this year. I'm 0-2 this year so I'm determined to win one. I want Venus to win, but Kerber would be another good match."
