Tennis
2008-07-03 - Wimbledon- Day 10 vs
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Women's Semi Finals
Venus Williams v Elena Dementieva
We are very close to one again seeing an all Williams Wimbledon final and this is expected to be the tougher match for the 2 sisters.
Williams has yet to drop a set in this tournament but she has rarely looked totally convincing in her play. In the last round, Venus really took advantage of her opponent's serve and had break point chances in 7 of 10 service games she faced. My only real concern for Venus is the number of errors she makes for no apparent reason and she will have to reduce them for this important match.
Venus Williams has played some of the top girls in the semi finals, including Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova and Justine Henin and has come through those matches with relative ease. This is usually when she comes into a league of her own and really starts dominating matches.
Dementieva showed all her fragility in the last round as she threw away a 6-1, 5-1 lead before eventually winning her match in the 3rd set against Nadia Petrova. Dementieva has struggled through the majority of her rounds and it is a testament to her fighting spirit that she has managed to come through so many tough rounds, but Venus Williams is a totally different test on Centre Court.
This is Elena's best performance at Wimbledon. Her previous best came 2 years ago when she reached the quarter finals, only to be beaten relatively easily by Maria Sharapova in straight sets. Dementieva will need her serve working because Venus will look to pressure the 2nd serve and could cause damage off of that.
The 2 players have met 7 times previously and it is Venus who holds the edge with 5 wins. They met last year in Warsaw, a match Williams won in straight sets, but that is their only meeting in the last 3 years. They have never played each other on grass.
This has the potential to be a close match, but I have a feeling that Venus Williams will be totally up for the game and could pass the handicap set so far. Williams will need to cut out her basic unforced errors off her groundstrokes and really make Dementieva pay for any 2nd serves.
Dementieva has had an amazing run to this stage, and I really hope she can win a Grand Slam some day, I just dont think this will be her tournament. Venus has the edge on serve, experience on this court and in the mental department, but Elena should be able to have some exchanges from the baseline. However, like I mentioned, I think the handicap is something Venus could cover if she performs as she has in previous Semi Finals.
WILLIAMS in 2 sets
Serena Williams v Jie Zheng
While one of these semi finalists causes no surprises, the other makes me raise my eyebrows somewhat.
Serena Williams has looked dominating for the last 2 weeks as she bids to reclaim the Wimbledon title from her older sister. Serena is yet to drop a set and has been her intimidating best when dismissing the challenge of Radwanska in the last round. She has been serving impressively and is not making the kinds of errors that may be expected with the power she hits the ball.
Williams has a solid record on the grass courts as would be expected from a 2 time former winner here. Serena has participated in 4 semi finals here and has only lost 1 time, that being to Venus Williams. 2 of the other 3 semis saw her win very easily, while she did have a titanic win over Amelie Mauresmo at this stage in 2004. Williams has looked very strong during this tournament and very focused and I think she will be really tough to stop here.
Zheng is the surprise package in the semi finals this year and is also making history by being the first Chinese lady to make a Grand Slam Semi Final. She has had some impressive victories over Cibulkova, Ivanovic, Svazay and Vaidisova coming into this match but this will also be her toughest test by far. Vaidisova should have really won her match with Zheng but made a huge number of unforced errors and failed to take her break point chances, something I dont think Serena will oblige with.
This is easily Zheng's best performance here and she has dedicated her winnings to the Chinese province really affected greatly by an earthquake. It will be interesting to see how she handles the pressure of playing on this stage with a big name opponent and knowing the tennis world will be focused on the match. This could either break her or make her here, but Williams will not make it easy at all.
The 2 players have only played once before and it was in the 1st round at Wimbledon in 2004. Williams was the defending Champion back then and breezed through for the loss of just 4 games. I am sure this match will be more competitive than that one.
Zheng really was the surprise package this year at Wimbledon after Marion Bartoli last year but I think her run will come to an end against a fully focused Serena Williams. I just cant see Zheng affecting the Williams serve enough while fending off a challenge to her own serve and think Williams will do enough to cover the spread.
WILLIAMS in 2 sets
BEST BETTING TIP :
Venus Williams - 4.5 gamesSerena Williams - 5.5 games
