2021 Australian Open: Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka enter the semifinals.Prediction, selection, competition history

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The stage is scheduled for the Australian Open semi-final Grand Slam on Wednesday night: 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams will face three-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.

The 39-year-old No. 10 seed Williams (Williams) will continue to chase history. If she advances to the final and wins, it will be her record 24th Grand Slam singles champion. However, since winning the Australian Open in 2017 (daughter Olympia who is two months pregnant), Williams has advanced to four Grand Slam finals and lost everything.

One of these losses was in the 2018 U.S. Open final against Osaka. Williams suffered three code violations in the final, including match fines. At last year’s U.S. Open, Williams lost to Victoria Azarenka in three sets of semifinals.

23-year-old Osaka is the third seed of this year’s Australian Open. Her three Grand Slam titles are the 2018 U.S. Open (Williams), the 2019 Australian Open (Petra Kvitova) and the 2020 U.S. Open (Azarenka). Entering the semi-finals on Wednesday night, the Osaka team started a 19-game winning streak, a record that dates back to February last year. In this month’s Melbourne quarter-final victory over Xie Suwei, Osaka achieved a perfect 10-0 record in the quarter-finals or later Grand Slam tournaments.

Every time Osaka reaches the semi-finals in a Grand Slam tournament, she will continue to win the game. Williams’ outstanding career was 8-0 in the Australian Open semi-finals. She won 7 of the 23 Grand Slam tournaments. Both sides have the motivation to reach the semi-finals.

Williams said: “Of course I think this is the best match I’ve played in this competition.” Said after winning the quarter-finals Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep (Simona Halep).

Osaka’s playing style is consistent with Williams’s strength. The serve defeated two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza in the fourth round and won two game points and then 66 consecutive games. In minutes, Xie Suwei was knocked down in a straight game. She won 24 victories and only conceded 2 points in her first serve.

“[I’m] I am very satisfied with today’s game.Every time i play [Su-wei]Osaka is always fighting like this,” Osaka said after winning the quick quarter-finals. “Even if the score is like this, it is actually another fight for me. She was able to hit the winner from both sides. You never know when she is going to do it. “

So far, both Osaka and Williams have lost only one game in the tournament-both participated in the fourth round.

The road to the semifinals

Serena Williams

  • 1R: Laura Siegemund, 6-1, 6-1
  • 2R: Nina Stojanovic, 6-3, 6-0
  • 3R: Anastasia Potapova, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
  • 4R: Aryna Sabalenka, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4
  • Qualifications structure: Simona Halep (Simona Halep) 6-3, 6-3

Naomi Osaka

  • 1R: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-1, 6-2
  • 2R: Caroline Garcia 6-2, 6-3
  • 3R: Ons Jabeur, 6-3, 6-2
  • 4R: Garbine Muguruza, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5
  • QF: Hsieh Su-wei, 6-2, 6-2

Head to head (2-2 all the time)

The two powerful batsmen faced each other only four times, and all games were played on hard courts. Their first match in a Grand Slam tournament was held in the 2018 U.S. Open final, and Osaka consecutively surpassed Williams in her first Grand Slam title.

2018 championship game compromised by controversial penalties. The chairman referee Carlos Ramos violated three codes for Williams. The third led to a free throw in the game. Osaka led 5-3 in the second game. In the end, this led to Williams entering the second consecutive loss of a major at the time.

In the first two games that Osaka played against each other, Williams won the last two games.

2021-One Day Challenge-Final
Winner-S. Williams, 6-2, 2-6, 10-7

2019-Rogers Cup-Quarterfinals
Winner-S. Williams, 6-3, 6-4

2018-U.S. Open-Finals
Winner-Osaka, 6-2, 6-4

2018-Miami Open-first round
Winner-Osaka, 6-3, 6-2

Forecast and pick

Williams performed well in this competition. We haven’t seen another sense of stability and ease from her for a while. The extension of the game time due to the coronavirus pandemic (only two Grand Slams were held in 2020) seems to have put a little pressure on the No. 24 champion. The film crew who followed her and her family At this year’s Australian Open (probably the moment she broke the record of Margaret Court… if she did), Her defense is unshakable, She’s swinging Strong, Flo-Jo inspired Nike’s appearance In each of her games.

More importantly, it felt like she was finally here.

When you are playing Williams, you can play the best tennis of your life and still finish runner-up. I think this will be the case in Osaka in the upcoming semifinals. Williams returned to the point where he embraced his strength, and rallied and surpassed his opponents.

select: Williams advanced to the championship with a three-set victory over Osaka. The winner of the Williams-Osaka semi-final on Wednesday will face 22nd-ranked Jennifer Brady or 25th-ranked Carolina Mochova, who will both play Ashley Barty in the quarter-finals. Number one.

How to watch the semifinals

where is it: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
When: Wednesday, February 17, at 10 PM Eastern Time
TV: ESPN
Emphasize: CBS Sports Headquarters



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