Skip to main content

Serena passes Navratilova’s Grand Slam record

Serena Williams

Serena Williams

World number one Serena Williams powered to a record 307th Grand Slam match win with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Sweden’s Johanna Larsson to reach the US Open’s fourth round.

The American moved ahead of Martina Navratilova for most match wins in a major by a woman, and tied Roger Federer’s mark for men.

“That’s pretty awesome and what a place to do it, where everything first started,” said the 34-year-old.

Serena won her first Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows in 1999.

“To be up there with both men and women is something that’s super rare, and it actually feels really good,” she added.

The American is bidding to claim a 23rd Grand Slam singles title, which would see her surpass Steffi Graf as the most successful woman in the Open Era.

The six-time US Open champion, whose number one ranking is under threat, next faces Kazakhstan’s Yaroslava Shvedova, a 6-2 7-5 winner over China’s Zhang Shuai.

Sister Venus Williams, the sixth seed and oldest woman in the tournament at 36, also went through with a 6-1 6-2 win over 26th seed Laura Siegemund of Germany.

Venus, who won back-to-back US Open titles in 2000 and 2001, will compete for a quarter-final berth against Czech 10th seed Karolina Pliskova.

She will meet her sister Serena in the semi-finals if both continue their winning form.

Fifth seed Simona Halep of Romania smashed her racquet in frustration before avoiding an upset by defeating Hungary’s Timea Babos 6-1 2-6 6-4.

Halep trailed 3-1 in the deciding set but fought back to reach the last 16.

“I don’t know how I came back. I felt like I didn’t play my best but I was fighting to the end for every ball,” she said.

Halep will play Spain’s 11th seed Carla Suarez Navarro for a place in the quarter-finals.

Suarez celebrated her 28th birthday with a 6-4 6-3 victory over Russian Elena Vesnina.

Fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland overcame France’s Caroline Garcia 6-2 6-3 and will face Ana Konjuh of Croatia next.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Court grants Fani-Kayode N50m bail

Fani-kayode sandwiched by EFCC officials Justice James Tsoho of the Federal High Court Abuja on Thursday granted a N50m bail to former spokesman of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode. Fani-Kayode was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a five-count charge of money laundering to the tune of N26m. Fani-Kayode is the sole defendant in the fresh charges numbered, FHC/ABJ/CR/140/2016. The EFCC accused the defendant of diverting 26 million Naira allegedly received from the ONSA while Sambo Dasuki was in office. The anti-graft agency also accused him of handling the said N26 million without going through financial institution as required under the Money Laundering Act. The embattled former minister is already facing 17-count charge of money laundering before the Lagos Division of the court, along with a former Finance Minister; Nenadi Usman, Danjuma Yusuf and a firm; Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited. They were charg...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pope not involved in Colombian peace deal- Vatican

Pope Francis Pope Francis has turned down a request to play a role in the peace deal between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group. The Vatican in a statement issued on Wednesday in in Vatican City said that an invitation was sent to his Holiness in early August to appoint a representative to participate in the committee that selected the judges for the talks. The statement said that though Pope Francis supported the peace process, he, however, reiterated that he would not get involved in Colombian peace deal. It said that Pope was praying for the enlightenment of the hearts and minds of those who were called to promote the common good of the Colombian nation. A deal was announced last week, putting an end to five decades of internal conflict between government forces and the FARC rebels. The agreement, which needed to be ratified through a referendum in Oct. 2, would entail setting up a special court to grant amnesties or pu...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fall of Assad is a Blow to Russia's Prestige

The potential fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-standing ally of Russia, would mark a turning point in Moscow’s global influence, particularly in the Middle East. Steve Rosenberg’s analysis underscores the profound implications for Russia, which has invested heavily—both militarily and politically—in ensuring Assad’s survival over the past decade. This article delves into why Assad’s downfall would strike at the core of Russian prestige and what it could mean for the broader geopolitical landscape. Russia's Strategic Commitment to Syria Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Russia has been a staunch supporter of Assad's regime. In 2015, Moscow launched a military intervention that proved decisive in stabilizing Assad’s hold on power. This intervention solidified Russia's role as a key power broker in the Middle East and demonstrated its willingness to project military power far beyond its borders. Syria is not just an ally for Russia; it is a...
Post a Comment
Read more