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Serena into US Open final, to play against history-making Osaka

Published : 07 Sep 2018, 11:41

DF-Xinhua Report

Serena Williams of United States hits a return during the women's singles semi-final match against Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia at the 2018 US Open in New York, the United States, Sept. 6, 2018. Williams won 2-0. Photo Xinhua.

Six-time champion Serena Williams was rarely troubled en route to a straight-set victory over Anastasija Sevastova from Latvia on Thursday and will play against Japanese rising star Naomi Osaka in the U.S. Open women's singles final.

Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam winner, soared into the 31st Grand Slam final of her career and her ninth U.S. Open final with a one-sided 6-3, 6-0 drubbing of No.19 seed Sevastova, while the 20-year-old Osaka also notched up a comprehensive victory in the other semifinal, beating last year's runner-up Madison Keys of the United States 6-2, 6-4.

"Honestly, it is remarkable, I couldn't have predicted this at all," Williams said. "I just feel like there's a lot of growth to still go in my game. That's actually the most exciting part."

In the first meeting between the two players, Williams erased an 0-2 start to dominate the remainder of the match, winning 12 of the final 13 games to race into the title match after only 65 minutes of play.

It is her second Grand Slam final of the year following her finalist run at Wimbledon earlier in the summer.

Osaka defeated Williams in their only previous meeting in straight sets in the first round of the Miami Open this season.

"I lost to Naomi last time we played, but I definitely wasn't at my best," Williams said about her prior encounter against Osaka, which was in her WTA second event contested after giving birth to her daughter Olympia. "Again, I'm still in that climb."

For Osaka, it will be the biggest final of her career after becoming the first Japanese woman to reach a Grand Slam final.

"I feel like every day that I play, I always want to keep improving, so I'm never really sure what my top level is," said Osaka. "But I think for sure today I played really well, and I had to because Keys is such a great player. She has a really good record against me."

Asked about her final against Williams, Osaka said it feels "a little bit surreal".

"Even when I was a little kid, I always dreamed that I would play Serena in a final of a Grand Slam. Just the fact that it's happening, I'm very happy about it," she said.