Contrasts of Style, Experience Highlight Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles Semifinals

By Chris Oddo

Photo Credit: Clive Rose/ Getty

(July 4, 2012)— The oldish and the youngish, the proven and the coming of age. Contrasts abound among this year’s Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles semifinalists, but one thing is true of all four talents vying for a spot in the final: each is playing brilliantly at the moment.

Serena Williams, in her best performance post-life-threatening scare, is raining down aces; Victoria Azarenka, fresh off a Roland Garros meltdown, appears ready to reassert her claim on the No. 1 ranking; Agnieszka Radwanska and Angelique Kerber, each playing in their first Wimbledon semifinal, are still in the draw because they’ve proven to be exceptionally sound on the grass.

All of this points to an enticing pair of matches on Thursday, with four athletes primed to put forth their best performance when it matters most. Could anything be better?

Without any further ado, here is a preview of each of Thursday’s semifinals:

Serena Williams vs. Victoria Azarenka
Head to Head: Serena leads 7-1 (5-0) in Grand Slams

A quick glance at the head-to-head might lead one to believe that Serena is head and shoulders above Azarenka in every way, but a closer inspection of their history reveals that Azarenka has pushed Serena on several occasions only to lose her nerve or to be eventually outgunned by a fitter, more cocksure Williams.

Twice at the Australian Open, Azarenka staked herself to big leads against Williams, but each time she failed to follow through, once due to an illness and the other due to Serena pulling one of the most amazing comebacks of all-time.

Last year at the US Open, Azarenka played brilliantly against an in-form Williams, but still couldn’t manage a set.

But, keep in mind: Williams is 30 now, and Azarenka is a Grand Slam champion with a shot to regain the No. 1 ranking with a victory on Thursday. In other words, a lot has changed since their last Grand Slam meeting: the Belarusian is not a fickle, undisciplined kid anymore, and Williams is not quite the indomitable, ethereal champion she once was.

With that said, the swagger that Williams has played with at Wimbledon thus far has been reminiscent of her glory days. With a 23-ace performance in the third round against Zheng Jie, and a dominant take-out of defending champion Petra Kvitova in the quarters, Serena has raised many an eyebrow and reminded everyone—peers included—that when it comes to Wimbledon, she is still top dog.

All the more reason for the feisty Azarenka to come out on Thursday with something to prove. The 22-year-old will look for ways to exploit her advantages in the movement category, and if she can serve the way she has in her previous matches, she’ll have chances to do this.

The big question? How well will Serena serve, and if she does serve well, is there any way that Azarenka can break her? Azarenka is one of the best returners in the game, but there is nobody in the history of women’s tennis that can take the racquet out of a returner's hands better than Williams.

Key Stat #1: Azarenka is the only player remaining to have yet to drop a set.
Key Stat #2: Williams is vying to become the first player older than 30 to win a Grand Slam since 1990

Pick: Williams in 2

Agnieszka Radwanska vs. Angelique Kerber
Head to Head: Tied, 2-2

When Angelique Kerber upset Agnieszka Radwanska in the second round of last year's US Open, everybody was under the impression that it was a major flop for Radwanska. Turns out it was a major coup for Kerber, who reached her first ever Grand Slam semifinal a few days later in New York, and has now ridden that wave of confidence all the way to a top ten ranking and—whabam!—a Wimbledon semifinal.

As far as Radwanska goes, she recovered quite nicely from that setback last summer and has since gone on a torrid run that has taken her to a career-high ranking of No. 3. She also, for good measure, avenged that three-set loss in New York with a three-set win against Kerber in Tokyo last year en route to her first of two consecutive titles in Asia last fall.

9 months later, each player has wowed us on such a consistent basis that it’s hard to imagine either one of them losing on Thursday.

But as is always the way in tennis, one of them surely will.

Kerber, who advanced after winning a nail-biting, stomach-churning quarterfinal with fellow German Sabine Lisicki, will have to avoid the negative body language and temper issues that nearly spoiled her chances against Lisicki in the third set in that quarterfinal. She’ll be facing a calm, crafty, somewhat unnerving opponent in Radwanska, and her belief will surely be tested at times.

Temper issues aside, Kerber has been in sparkling form at Wimbledon. Like Radwanska, Kerber has shown an affinity for the grass, and for playing a counterpunching, defensive style that makes her hard to put away. The German is fit, quick, and moves the ball around the court well while being somewhat difficult to read.

Radwanska owns many of the same qualities, and her penchant for crafting creative, unconventional points is second to none in the women’s game. Kerber will not be able to rely on her opponent’s pace as she has done with Clijsters and Lisicki in the last two rounds. She’ll have to rely more on her anticipation and guise to get past Radwanska.

For Radwanska, who is gunning to become the first Polish Grand Slam finalist since 1939, she’ll be up against her first top ten opponent at this year’s championships, but it’s probably not cause for alarm as she hasn’t lost to anybody inside the top 20 except for Victoria Azarenka this year.

This match promises to be a high-stress, roller-coaster affair that more than likely won't be decided until late in the final set.

Just another day in tennis paradise.

Key Stat #1: Kerber is 16-1 in three-set matches this year.
Key Stat #2: Radwanska can claim the No. 1 ranking at Wimbledon, but only if she defeats Serena Williams in the final.

Pick: Radwanska in 3