12 July,2017 08:39 AM IST | | AFP
Venus Williams became the oldest Wimbledon semi-finalist for 23 years as the five-time champion brushed aside French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko, while Garbine Muguruza powered past Svetlana Kuznetsova to make it back to the last four yesterday
Spain's Garbine Muguruza returns v Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova during the quarter-final match at Wimbledon yesterday. Pic/AFP
Venus Williams became the oldest Wimbledon semi-finalist for 23 years as the five-time champion brushed aside French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko, while Garbine Muguruza powered past Svetlana Kuznetsova to make it back to the last four yesterday.
Williams' 73-minute masterclass on Centre Court clinched a 6-3, 7-5 victory that made her the most senior player to reach the semi-finals since Martina Navratilova in 1994.
World No. 11 Williams, beaten in this year's Australian Open final, was knocked out in the 2016 semi-finals and is chasing a first major title since winning Wimbledon in 2008. Williams' victory equalled her sister Serena's total of 86 main draw match victories at Wimbledon, the most among any active player.
She will climb back into the top 10 thanks to her Wimbledon run, but breaking Serena's record to become the tournament's oldest champion in the Open era is her sole focus.
Johanna Konta became the first British woman to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for 39 years as the world number seven fought back to beat Simona Halep 6-7 (2/7), 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.
