Jul 3, 2008 - 1:31 PM
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Williams advanced to her second straight Wimbledon final Thursday courtesy of a 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) victory over the fifth-seeded Dementieva on Centre Court.
The reigning champion and a four-time winner of this grasscourt Grand Slam, the seventh-seeded Williams could potentially face sixth-seeded younger sister Serena in Saturday's final.
With a win over tournament upstart Jie Zheng in Thursday's other semifinal, Serena could complete an all-Williams Grand Slam final for the third time at the All England Club and for the seventh time overall.
"Our main focus is obviously both of us getting to the final," Venus said. "Then from there, it's every Williams for themself."
Serena currently owns a 6-2, 5-6 lead over Zheng in a match that repeatedly has been delayed by rain.
Venus, who claimed her sixth major title here last year, also won this event in 2000, 2001 and 2005. But she has lost both of her previous Wimbledon final meetings with Serena, who defeated her older sister to claim consecutive titles here in 2002 and 2003.
"It's so exciting," Venus said. "I'm looking forward to the final, and I'm dying for Serena to get through. It's my seventh final and I'm looking forward to playing Serena in our third final."
When asked about the possibility of another all-Williams final, Dementieva admitted that it would be difficult for her to play against her sister.
"It's really hard," Dementieva said. "It's going to be a family decision. They know their game very well. So maybe there is not so much fight in the end."
In what could have been a misinterpretation of Dementieva's response, a reporter asked Venus about the idea of a predetermined outcome between herself and Serena.
"I contribute my best in my sport and I also have a ton of respect for myself and my family," Venus said. "So any mention of that is extremely disrespectful for who I am, what I stand for, and my family."
Serena owns a 5-1 all-time record in major finals against Venus, whose only major championship victory in the sibling rivalry came at the 2001 U.S. Open.
Before securing another berth in the final here, Venus had to get past Dementieva, the highest remaining seed left in the women's draw who was making her first career Wimbledon semifinal appearance.
Screaming and grunting audibly throughout the 102-minute match, Dementieva delivered a sloppy performance, committing three double faults and 22 unforced errors.
After looking completely overmatched in the first set, Dementieva battled in the second, converting an early break to set up a tiebreaker. But the 26-year-old Russian ultimately was no match for Venus, who owns a 6-2 record in the all-time series.
Dementieva's overall frustration was exemplified during the eighth point of the tiebreaker, when she rifled a forehand into the net to fall behind, 5-3. Immediately after the ball hit the net, Dementieva let out a prolonged scream of aggravation, perhaps signaling that she was doomed in the match.
