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Williams Advances and Will Face Upstart for Rogers Cup Title Williams Advances and Will Face Upstart for Rogers Cup Title
(35 minutes later)
TORONTO — Top-ranked Serena Williams reached the final of the Rogers Cup after a tough 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory against fourth-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska on Saturday night.TORONTO — Top-ranked Serena Williams reached the final of the Rogers Cup after a tough 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory against fourth-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska on Saturday night.
“I was just a little frustrated with myself,” Williams said. “I don’t think I was playing as aggressive as I needed to play. I let her play her game, which is what she wanted to do, but I wasn’t able to play my game as much.”“I was just a little frustrated with myself,” Williams said. “I don’t think I was playing as aggressive as I needed to play. I let her play her game, which is what she wanted to do, but I wasn’t able to play my game as much.”
Williams will face 27th-ranked Sorana Cirstea of Romania on Sunday. Williams is seeking her third win at this event, having won in 2001 and in 2011.Williams will face 27th-ranked Sorana Cirstea of Romania on Sunday. Williams is seeking her third win at this event, having won in 2001 and in 2011.
Williams, who has not lost a set at this year’s tournament, appeared ill between sets.Williams, who has not lost a set at this year’s tournament, appeared ill between sets.
“I just had a little stomach issue,” she said. “I’ll be fine. I’m already feeling a lot better.”“I just had a little stomach issue,” she said. “I’ll be fine. I’m already feeling a lot better.”
Radwanska, a 24-year-old from Poland, traded breaks with Williams twice in the first set. Radwanska led, 6-5, but Williams forced a tiebreaker, during which she hammered a crosscourt winner for a 6-3 advantage. Williams, 31, then hit an ace on set point.Radwanska, a 24-year-old from Poland, traded breaks with Williams twice in the first set. Radwanska led, 6-5, but Williams forced a tiebreaker, during which she hammered a crosscourt winner for a 6-3 advantage. Williams, 31, then hit an ace on set point.
“The tiebreak, I just tried to take advantage of my serve as well as her serve,” Williams said. “I don’t think I played my best.”“The tiebreak, I just tried to take advantage of my serve as well as her serve,” Williams said. “I don’t think I played my best.”
Williams, the tournament’s top seed, fell behind by 3-1 in the second set but won five of the next six games. She won a 10-minute game, pulling ahead by 5-4, and broke Radwanska, finishing the match in 1 hour 52 minutes.Williams, the tournament’s top seed, fell behind by 3-1 in the second set but won five of the next six games. She won a 10-minute game, pulling ahead by 5-4, and broke Radwanska, finishing the match in 1 hour 52 minutes.
Earlier in the day, Cirstea, 23, continued her strong play at the tournament, upsetting fourth-seeded Li Na, 6-1, 7-6 (5).Earlier in the day, Cirstea, 23, continued her strong play at the tournament, upsetting fourth-seeded Li Na, 6-1, 7-6 (5).
In the past week, Cirstea upset the former No. 1 players Jelena Jankovic and Caroline Wozniacki along with the defending tournament champion and sixth seed, Petra Kvitova. In the past week, Cirstea defeated the former No. 1 players Jelena Jankovic and Caroline Wozniacki along with the defending tournament champion and sixth seed, Petra Kvitova.
“She plays really tough,” Williams said of Cirstea. “She hits really hard. She has a good serve. She moves well, so she’s definitely not an easy player to play. Last few months, she’s been really consistent, and she’s just a player that’s finally found herself."“She plays really tough,” Williams said of Cirstea. “She hits really hard. She has a good serve. She moves well, so she’s definitely not an easy player to play. Last few months, she’s been really consistent, and she’s just a player that’s finally found herself."
RAONIC WINS ALL-CANADIAN SEMIFINAL Milos Raonic beat his fellow Canadian Vasek Pospisil, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4), to reach the Rogers Cup final in Montreal. Raonic, Canada’s top-ranked player, will face Rafael Nadal, who defeated the two-time defending champion, Novak Djokovic, later Saturday. Nadal won, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2). RAONIC WINS ALL-CANADIAN SEMIFINAL; WILL FACE NADAL Milos Raonic beat his fellow Canadian Vasek Pospisil, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4), to reach the Rogers Cup final in Montreal. Raonic, Canada’s top-ranked player, will face Rafael Nadal, who defeated the two-time defending champion, Novak Djokovic, later Saturday. Nadal won, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2).
Raonic, a 22-year-old from Thornhill, Ontario, will crack the top 10 in the next world rankings after reaching the final of a Masters series event. The last Canadian to win the event was Robert Bedard, who took the last of his three titles in 1958. “Milos is a fantastic player,” Nadal said in a courtside interview. “I know him well. He has played a fantastic tournament here. I’m very happy for Canada to have two players in the semifinals.” Raonic is 0-3 against Nadal and has never won a set against him.
“They’re all very special, but I think the top-10 one stands out more just because it’s a goal that I set this year,” Raonic said. “It looked a little bit difficult after how I played recently, but to do it here in Montreal is a relief and it’s a happy feeling.” “Last time, he gave me a whupping in Barcelona,” Raonic said. “It was a very different surface on clay. And at home for him, it was tough.”
On the final point of the third-set tiebreaker, the 11th-seeded Raonic stretched to get to Pospisil’s shot at the net, forcing his opponent to make a lunging volley that went into the net. Djokovic and Nadal met for the 36th time, tying the record for the Open era set by John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl. Nadal leads the series, 21-15, and cut Djokovic’s lead on hardcourts to 11-6. Djokovic had won 13 straight matches in the event. Nadal has won seven tournaments this year, but only one so far on a hardcourt.
“I was winning most of the points from the baseline once the rallies were started,” said Pospisil, a 23-year-old from Vernon, British Columbia. “The tiebreak got away from me a little bit there at the end, a couple of loose points. But I went for it. No regrets. I didn’t want to lose the match playing defensively. I tried to go for it even with the nerves that there were. This time, it didn’t work out, but that’s the right way for me to go.” (AP) Raonic, a 22-year-old from Thornhill, Ontario, will crack the top 10 in the next world rankings. The last Canadian to win the event was Robert Bedard, who took the last of his three titles in 1958.
“They’re all very special, but I think the top-10 one stands out more just because it’s a goal that I set this year,” Raonic said. “It looked a little bit difficult after how I played recently, but to do it here in Montreal is a relief and it’s a happy feeling.” (AP)