Serena Williams easily reaches US Open final
By HOWARD FENDRICH, Associated Press
Sep 7, 2012 6:25 PM CDT
Eva Longoria watches a semifinal match between Serena Williams and Italy's Sara Errani at the 2012 US Open tennis tournament, Friday, Sept. 7, 2012, in New York. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)   (Associated Press)

Thanks to her latest easy victory, Serena Williams is one match from her fourth U.S. Open title and 15th Grand Slam trophy overall.

Williams wasted little time or energy while overwhelming 10th-seeded Sara Errani of Italy 6-1, 6-2 on Friday night to reach the final at Flushing Meadows.

Building a 38-6 edge in winners and smacking nine aces to raise her tournament-leading total to 50, Williams needed only 64 minutes to dismiss Errani, the runner-up at the French Open.

Not only has Williams won every set she's played over the last two weeks, she's dropped a total of only 19 games across six matches. It's part of a stretch of dominance that has carried her to a 25-1 record since a shocking first-round exit at the French Open in late May, the only time in 49 Grand Slam appearances that Williams lost her opening match.

Her recent surge includes titles at Wimbledon and the London Olympics.

"It's really awesome," Williams said in an on-court interview. "That is what I wanted, and what I dreamed of, all year."

It was 12 months ago that the American was stunned in straight sets the U.S. Open final by Sam Stosur. Williams' championships in New York came in 1999, 2002 and 2008.

In Saturday night's final, she will face top-ranked Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, who beat Maria Sharapova in three sets earlier Friday. Williams is 9-1 against Azarenka.

"Obviously, Victoria wants to win, too," Williams told the crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium. "But I'm American, guys. Last one standing. Go USA!"

In many ways, her semifinal was a complete mismatch.

Errani had never been past the third round at the U.S. Open _ and never past the fourth round at any major tournament _ until this year. She reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open in January, then made it all the way to the final at the French Open, losing there to Sharapova.

In her first 17 Grand Slam appearances, Errani was 15-17. She entered Friday 17-3 in 2012 at the sport's four most important tournaments.

Friday's match was only her second major semifinal, Williams' 22nd, and that disparity showed right from the outset.

Errani did not even come within a point of winning a game until she already trailed 5-0. When Williams netted a backhand, Errani got on the board at 5-1.

By then, the outcome was clear.

When Errani finally won a second game, getting to 2-1 in the second set with an inside-out forehand to hold serve, she let out a yelp and skipped toward the sideline.

Errani won the first point of the next game, too, with a well-angled groundstroke winner that made it love-15.

At that moment, it was as if Williams said to herself, "OK, enough is enough."

She won four points in a row to hold for a 3-1 lead like this: 102 mph service winner, 117 mph ace, 114 mph ace, 119 mph ace.

In the next game, Williams dumped a swinging backhand volley into the net and hopped in place, angry with herself, but then restored order to break yet again and make it 4-1.

Williams, who turns 31 on Sept. 26, is trying to become the first 30-year-old woman to win the U.S. Open since Martina Navratilova in 1987. She's also hoping to become the first woman with championships at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open since _ yes, you guessed it _ Williams did it in 2002.

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