By Jonathan Jurejko on September 5, 2018

Serena Williams passed her toughest test so far at the US Open to beat Karolina Pliskova and reach the semi-finals for a ninth consecutive time.

Williams, seeded 17th, trailed 4-2 in the first set but hit back to win 6-4 6-3 against the Czech eighth seed.

The American, 36, is seeking her first Grand Slam trophy since giving birth to daughter Olympia last September.

If she wins it would be her 24th major title - equalling Australian Margaret Court's all-time record.

"The crowd was really rooting for me and I felt so bad because everyone out here was cheering and I wasn't winning so I thought I had to try harder," said Williams.

"I really feel like right now I'm playing free. I was having a baby this time last year so I have nothing to prove."

Williams faces Latvia's 19th seed Anastasija Sevastova, who knocked out defending champion Sloane Stephens earlier on Tuesday, in the last four on Thursday.

Crowd helps Serena turn match around

Williams is only playing her eighth tournament since becoming a mum, but had only dropped one set - in her last-16 match against Latvia's Kaia Kanepi - on her way to the last eight.

However, having lost to Angelique Kerber in the Wimbledon final, there were question marks how she would fare against another high-calibre player.

After a slow start against the big-serving former number one, Williams grew into the match as she responded to some vociferous backing from Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The six-time US champion won eight games in a row - four at the end of the first and four at the start of the second - to help her secure victory in one hour 26 minutes.

It was her first win over a top-10 ranked player since beating Britain's Johanna Konta at the 2017 Australian Open. (BBC)

Source Daily Sports

Posted September 5, 2018

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