The top halves quarter finals today saw two intense battles and as I though may happen, one of the top 4 lost.
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams had her first real test against 2009 champion Kuznetsova, eventually winning 61 36 63. Williams started well as always, looking controlled. However, she got herself into a 0-4 hole in the second set and her temper frayed. Kuznetsova kept the same game plan; measured hitting with huge forehands every now and then and despite a noticeable stomach pain managed to hold onto her serve, twice coming from 0-40 down. By the third set, Williams was in an emotional state and was quickly down 0-2 and facing 3 break points in the third game. Each time though, Williams managed to stave it off and Kuznetsova's recent lack of big matches showed; she began missing and Williams won 5 straight games as her once errant game returned to its best. It's Serena's 29th straight win as she moves into her first semi here since 2003 having lost her last 4 quarter finals at this event.
5/5 Errani reached a second straight semi here with a 64 76(6) win over (4/4) Radwanska. It was a real battle of diversity; there was too many drop shots to count and both players utilised all corners of the court. It was Errani though who played better on the crucial points in windy conditions, winning 3 straight games from 2-3 down in the first to take a 5-3 lead. The second set was full of breaks (8 in total) as Errani came from 1-3 down to serve for the match at 5-4. Despite showing fine resistance, including winning an epic rally down match point, Radwanska often missed timed her shots when going for winning shots. This is Errani's first win over the Pole and a top 5 player!
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