Serena & Venus: Final Showdown

Serena Williams only needed 45 minutes to move into the final of the Sony Ericsson Championships - Doha 2009 on Saturday, winning the first set and losing the first game of the second before Caroline Wozniacki retired with a left abdominal strain. 

Wozniacki, who had been suffering from a leg injury throughout the week and battled through cramping to win her second round robin match against Vera Zvonareva, looked strong early on, breaking Williams in the opening game and consolidating it for a 2-0 lead. But the No.4 seed couldn't hold onto it as No.2 seed Williams found her range again, taking four games in a row from there and eventually closing out the opening set relatively comfortably, 6-4.

Wozniacki got a break in the first game of the second set as well but at the changeover was forced to stop play with another injury on her list for the week, handing Williams a 64 01 win. 

"She's been struggling throughout the tournament," Williams said. "Just to come out today and try to put up a fight for the crowd, it's so good to see a face like hers on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. She's an incredible fighter."

"It was just too much for me to keep playing," Wozniacki said. "I could either smile or cry, so I chose to smile. There's nothing else you can do. I had a great year. I did all I could. I used all the strength I had left. Today I just didn't have any left. I've learned that I'm a huge fighter and impossible is nothing."

Williams went 3-0 in her round robin group, losing just one set, to Venus Williams - that match went the absolute distance though, with her big sister even holding match point at 6-5 in the third set before falling, 57 64 76(4). But apart from that Williams has not lost a set the whole week in wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elena Dementieva and, albeit by retirement, Wozniacki.

"I'm just taking it one day at a time," the 28-year-old added. "I've never done so well in the round robin of the Sony Ericsson Championships, so I'm really excited. I came into this week hoping to do my best and here I am. I think I'm gonna be wiped out by the end of this." 

Serena leads the all-Williams rivalry with Venus, 12-10, winning their last three meetings this year at Miami, Wimbledon and here in Doha a few days ago. But they did meet on this very court a year ago as well in the round robin portion, with Venus winning that, 57 61 60.