Clutch

Serena Williams. Enough said.

Clutch.

The only word that comes to mind when thinking about Serena Williams and her spectacular semifinal match against Elena Dementieva is clutch. Most people know, I am no fan of either Williams sister. But my hat goes off to Serena after that performance. Throughout the match she came up with the big shots when she seemed down and out.

Has their ever been a more important forehand than the one she hit down break point in the second set that grazed the back edge of the line? Has anyone ever seen such a Sampras-esque serving performance from a woman on such a big stage?

Originally, I did not think either Elena nor Dinara Safina (who faces Venus Williams in the other semifinal in a few moments) would stand a chance against either Williams sister. Elena gave me hope that at least one of the Russians would scrape her way into the final. Serena, however, smashed that hope with her serve. Countless times she would come up with a powerful serve that left me speechless. Throughout the match the ESPN commentators commented on how well Elena served. Yet I, however, could not get past how well Serena served when down and out. Both were going for their second serves. But I always had this feeling that Serena would not choke as she did against Kuznetsova in their infamous Roland Garros match.

With the match finishing only minutes ago I still can't fathom how Serena won. She hit a clutch volley down match point. She hit a clutch passing shot to get ahead in the second set. Serena just hit clutch shot over and over again.

I can't say this enough. I congratulate Serena on her herculean effort to defeat Elena Dementieva (who also deserves a hell ofalot of applause for her grit and determination) and I just hope she brings her clutch play back with her on Saturday as she battles her sister or Safina. Now I just hope this next semifinal can be half as good as the match of the year for the WTA.

Ladie's Wimbledon Quarterfinals

Sabine Lisicki continues her string of upsets, knocking out top 10 seed Caroline Wozniacki.

Match of the Day: S. Lisicki vs D. Safina

Sabine's run to the Wimbledon quarterfinals has been full of ups and downs. In the first round she barely survived the slumping 32 seed, Anna Chakvetadze, who served for the match in the second set, before falling apart and Lisicki grabbing the win. She then followed up her win with some convincing victories over reigning Roland Garros Champ, Svetlana Kuznetsova, and Eastbourne champion, Caroline Wozniacki. Her main fault was failing to convert on a series of match points against Kuznetsova, but she still finished the match in straight sets.

Safina has been less than steller. Yet she is not new to poor play early in slams. She played horridly in Australia until the semifinals where she dispatched Vera Zvonareva only to fall to a rampaging Serena Williams. At Roland Garros she stormed through the early rounds yet once again fell apart in a Grand Slam final. With both players battling in their first Wimbledon quarterfinal Safina has at least played in multiple Grand Slam quarterfinals before and has the edge in experience. But can Lisicki's monster first serve and forehand overpower the Russian's long strokes that need plenty of time to damage her opponent?

My prediction: Lisicki wins the first set but can't finish Safina off, losing a close third set.

Other Matches:

Serena Williams has flown past opponents in the early rounds.

V. Azarenka vs S. Williams

Many people have this match pegged as an upset special as Azarenka is one of the few players that can match the Williams sisters off the ground. I'm not buying it though. Azarenka may be able to out shriek Serena but no way can she out-hit her. Serena's serve has been spectacular throughout The Championships and will give her the clear edge.

My prediction: Serena wins a tight straight set affair.

Venus Williams continues to dominate the lawns of Wimbledon

V. Williams vs A. Radwanksa

Venus is playing too well to lose to Radwanksa late in a slam. Radwanska may be able to run down enough balls to claim a few games, but her 60mph second serves will come back to bite her in the ass.

My prediction: Venus clobbers the young Pole

Elena Dementieva has yet to face a seed this year at Wimbledon.

E. Dementieva vs F. Schiavone

Who would have thought Schiavone could have reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals with the year she is having? Not I, certainly. Elena has had a cakewalk draw so far, facing no seeds, and she has easily defeated them all. Their H2H is 4-4 but this is a different Elena and different Franny since the last time they played. Schiavone barely has a winning record on the year while Elena has nearly fourty wins despite a poor clay season.

My prediction: I expect Elena to keep with her trend, winning in straight sets.