MELBOURNE, Australia — After struggling under a searing sun, Serena Williams found her rhythm today when the Rod Laver Arena roof was closed and advanced to the Australian Open semifinals.
Williams, a three-time Australian champion, dropped the first set but recovered when the roof was closed for the second and third sets to beat Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova 5-7, 7-5, 6-1.
Kuznetsova, who was broken when serving for the match at 5-4 in the second, was the only other major winner remaining in the women’s field.
Williams, who has nine Grand Slam singles titles, joined three other Russians in the semifinals.
“Me against the Russians, I guess,” she said.
Williams next plays Olympic gold medalist Elena Dementieva, who ousted Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2, 6-2.
Olympic silver medalist Dinara Safina and No. 7-seeded Vera Zvonareva meet in the other semifinal.
The roof stayed open for the first set of the Williams-Kuznetsova match, but the tournament’s “extreme heat policy” was put into effect at the break between sets. The temperature had risen to 107 degrees by then. When the air conditioning finally kicked in, so did Williams’ performance.
Until then, she said: “I was in, like, an out-of-body experience.”
Even local wildlife was struggling in the heat, with moths fluttering onto the court and dropping dead.
“It was hot for everyone, you know,” Dementieva said. “They were, like, ready to die; not to survive a day like that.”
Rafael Nadal, who beat Roger Federer in the French Open and Wimbledon finals and then overtook him at No. 1, plays No. 6 Gilles Simon of France in the men’s quarterfinals today.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who upset Nadal in the semis here last year before losing the final to defending champion Novak Djokovic, faces Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.
Djokovic dropped out of the tournament Tuesday when he retired ill from his quarterfinal against Andy Roddick while trailing two sets to one.
Roddick will play Federer in a semifinal. Federer routed Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina 6-3, 6-0, 6-0.
Roddick has not beaten Federer in six Grand Slam meetings and is 2-15 against the Swiss star. He has reason for encouragement, though. He ended an 11-match losing stretch to Federer last April in Miami.
“I think it helps that I stopped a big streak against him last year in Miami,” Roddick said. “It’s certainly not going to hurt at all.”
Connors returning to booth.
Tennis Channel today plans to announce that Jimmy Connors will be a lead analyst for its telecasts from this year’s U.S. Open. Aside from cameos, Connors hasn’t been a TV announcer for a U.S. network since 1991.
At a glance
A look today at Melbourne Park:
Men’s quarterfinal matches today: No. 1 Rafael Nadal vs. No. 6 Gilles Simon; No. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. Fernando Verdasco
Women’s quarterfinal matches today:
No. 2 Serena Williams def. No. 8 Svetlana Kuznetsova 5-7, 7-5, 6-1; No. 4 Elena Dementieva def. Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2, 6-2.
Stat of the day: 13 — Number of consecutive games won by Roger Federer to clinch his 6-3, 6-0, 6-0 win over Juan Martin del Potro
Quote of the day: “I feel bad for Novak right now; to not get a fair chance to defend his title, that’s too bad.” — Andy Roddick after Novak Djokovic, left, retired with illness in the fourth set
On TV today: 1 p.m., 7:30 p.m, 1:30 a.m., ESPN2
The Associated Press
