Serena Williams into Wimbledon semi-finals with win over Camila Giorgi
Tuesday 10 July 2018 18:54, UK
Serena Williams recovered from a set behind to seal her place in the Wimbledon semi-finals.
The seven-time champion beat Camila Giorgi 3-6 6-3 6-4 on Tuesday in the last eight, and will next face Julia Goerges, who beat Kiki Bertens 3-6 7-5 6-1, to decide a place in the final.
Williams entered Wimbledon seeded 25th having only returned in March from becoming a first-time mother last September, but is into her 11th semi-final at this tournament.
World No 52 Giorgi, in her first Grand Slam quarter-final, was Williams' highest-ranked opponent of Wimbledon so far and provided a stern test but ultimately fell short.
Giorgi was game from the opening exchanges, but the first set swerved in her favour when Williams failed to convert four break-point chances.
That put Giorgi 5-2 ahead, owing to her earlier break of serve, and gave her the impetus to win the set - the first that Williams had lost in this tournament.
The pendulum swung back when Williams broke for a 3-1 lead in the second set which helped her level the match.
The key game was when Williams powered to a 2-1 lead in the decisive set, against the serve, without conceding a point.
Her momentum was too much for Giorgi to stop, and Williams took a further step to her 24th Grand Slam title and her first at Wimbledon since 2016.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion was open about her perspective on the tournament as a whole after her quarter-final victory.
"I am OK, I feel good, I feel like I did better today, I had to," said the 36-year-old. "But this is only my fourth tournament back, I don't feel pressure, I don't feel I have to win this, I don't feel I have to lose this.
"I am just here to be here and prove I am back. I feel like I am back, I still have a long way to where I was."
Williams lifted the title in the last two years she played, in 2015 and 2016, this quarter-final success extends her winning streak at the All England Club to 19 matches.
On the other side of the draw, Angelique Kerber and Jelena Ostapenko set up a semi-final meeting by beating Daria Kasatkina and Dominika Cibulkova, respectively.
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Our next tennis action comes from the German Open in Hamburg. Watch the action live on Sky Sports Arena from Monday, July 23 from 10am.
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