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Agence France-Presse

For the first time since 1981, the US Open women’s semi-finals will be an all-American affair with seven-time grand slam champion Venus Williams and three slam title hopefuls in the mix.
Williams, seeking her third US Open crown after 2000 and 2001, will face Sloane Stephens while 20th seed CoCo Vandeweghe and 15th seed Madison Keys collide in Thursday’s matches at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The winners meet Saturday for the championship.
“It’s pretty awesome,” said Keys after completing the foursome with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Estonian qualifier Kaia Kanepi on Wednesday.
“I thought it would be a really special moment. I’m happy I helped out and got my name in there.”
No matter who advances, it will set up the first all-American US Open final since 2002, when Williams lost to younger sister Serena.
“It has been a great two weeks for American tennis, seeing all the American players in the draw and all of them advancing so deep and competing so well,” Williams said.
“It’s great to see this resurgence and I hope it can continue.”
US ninth seed Williams, enjoying one of her finest seasons at age 37, is leading the charge. This year’s Australian Open and Wimbledon runner-up is the US Open’s oldest semi-finalist and the oldest in any slam since Martina Navratilova at Wimbledon in 1994.
“It’s such a wonderful feeling, because you put in so much work to be able to succeed at these moments,” said Williams, who is on the verge of making three slam finals in a year for the first time since 2002.
Williams and Stephens in a showdown of African-American stars at Arthur Ashe Stadium shows the namesake barrier-breaker’s dream of racial diversity in tennis is alive in the 20th anniversary season of the world’s largest tennis venue.
“It’s great for American tennis. It’s great for African-American women,” Stephens said. “I hope that we keep it going.”
Ashe, the first black man to win a grand slam title when he captured the 1968 US Open, battled racism and bigotry with grace and patience until his death in 1993.
“He’s a total legend,” Williams said. “He played during a time where he couldn’t just focus on the tennis. I’m very blessed to be able to focus on my game. But he had to fight because of the colour of his skin.
“It was a completely different time. So I can’t even imagine the pressure he was under. To come out of it with grace, as a champion, it’s incredible.”
Venus Williams makes history at US Open as oldest grand slam semi-finalist in 23 years
Williams, whose first slam final was on Ashe 20 years ago, will return to the world top five for the first time since January 2011, her highest level since being diagnosed with the strength-sapping illness Sjogren’s Syndrome.
Stephens, who missed 11 months with a left foot injury before returning to Wimbledon, beat Williams in the first round of the 2015 French Open in their only prior match.
“She’s a great player, a great person, a great leader,” Stephens said. “I’m happy she’s still playing. She means a lot to the game.”
Stephens, ranked 83rd, has matched her deepest slam run from the 2013 Australian Open.
“If someone would have told me when I started at Wimbledon that I’d be in the semi-finals, I would have said they’re crazy,” Stephens said.

Vandeweghe eliminated Czech world number one Karolina Pliskova 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 before Keys, who is 2-0 against Vandeweghe, shook off nerves to win.
“I was real nervous,” Keys said. “The car ride over I was definitely feeling it but once I got out here I felt really good.”
Vandeweghe’s best slam charge was into this year’s Australian Open semi-finals while Keys made her deepest run to the 2015 Australian Open semi-finals.
In 1981, Americans Barbara Potter, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova and eventual winner Tracy Austin reached the final four.
The latest US players have looked to Venus and Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport and Jennifer Capriati as role models.
“We wanted to be those same players in a later generation. Now that we’re older, we can put that into words, but we all wanted to be there,” Vandeweghe said.


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US Open (tennis)

Venus Williams leads first all-American US Open semi-finals line-up since 1981

Venus Williams is into the US Open semi-finals along with three of her American counterparts. Photo: AFP

Sep 6, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Madison Keys of the United States hits a backhand against Kaia Kinepi of Estonia (not pictured) on day ten of the U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

TOPSHOT - Venus Williams of the US returns the ball to Czech Republic's Petra Kvitova during their 2017 US Open Women's Singles Quarterfinal match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York on September 5, 2017. Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams became the oldest Grand Slam semi-finalist since 1994 at age 37 by defeating two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7/2). / AFP PHOTO / Don EMMERT

(170906) -- NEW YORK, Sept. 6, 2017 (Xinhua) -- Sloane Stephens of the United States celebrates a scoring during the Women's Singles quarter final match against Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia at the 2017 U.S. Open in New York, the United States, Sept. 5, 2017. Sloane Stephens won 2-1. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

epa06188318 CoCo Vandeweghe of the US reacts after defeating Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic during their US Open Tennis Championships quarterfinals round match at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA, 06 September 2017. The US Open runs through September 10. EPA-EFE/ANDREW GOMBERT *** Local Caption *** 53000073

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Tennis

The Open’s oldest semi-finalist is joined by Americans Sloane Stephens, CoCo Vandeweghe and Madison Keys


Venus Williams leads first all-American US Open semi-finals line-up since 1981

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Open’s oldest semi-finalist is joined by Americans Sloane Stephens, CoCo Vandeweghe and Madison Keys

The Open’s oldest semi-finalist is joined by Americans Sloane Stephens, CoCo Vandeweghe and Madison Keys