Venus Williams fought off a strong late challenge from qualifier Flavia Pennetta on Thursday to win 6-3 7-5 and reach the semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Two-time former champion Williams took the opening set after breaking to lead 5-3, serving out the set to love and finishing with an ace. She then held the upper hand in the second set and led 4-2, but from then on she struggled to close out the match. Williams had to fight off two break points to hold for 5-3 before the battle moved on to a dramatic conclusion. After Pennetta held for 5-4 and in a nail-biting finish, Williams fell behind 0-40, recovered to hold a match point, but then dropped her serve. Despite that disappointment she managed to break Pennetta’s serve again to lead 6-5, but again fell behind 0-40 before claiming the next five points and the match.
“She just keeps fighting. She stays relevant,” said Williams. “That's what she does really well. She stays in the point. I have to give her credit for that. I think I could have maybe made a couple more shots, but it's not always easy against someone who competes as well as her.”
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