Australian Open 2017: Williams Sisters To Face Off In Ninth Grand Slam Final

Serena Williams set up an Australian Open final against her older sister Venus by routing Croatia’s Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-2, 6-1 on Thursday.

Australian Open 2017: Williams Sisters To Face Off In Ninth Grand Slam Final

The world No. 2 player is just one victory away from her 23rd Grand Slam. Serena, 35, defeated Lucic-Baroni in just 50 minutes.

The unseeded Croat, in her second major semifinal but first since 1999, particularly struggled with her forehand.

Thirteenth seed Venus, 36, defeated fellow American Coco Vandeweghe 6-7 (3-7) 6-2 6-3 to reach her first major final since 2009, the year she faced Serena in the Wimbledon finals and lost to her sister in straight sets.

Serena, a six-time Australian Open winner, is just one win away from surpassing Steffi Graf for the most major titles in the Open Era.

Serena broke twice in her first set against Lucic-Baroni and lost just five points on serve to gain total control.

A clean forehand return winner put her 2-1 ahead in the second set before a double fault from the Croat gave her a 4-1 lead she would not give up.

“It is unbelievable to watch Serena play tennis – the way she hits the ball and the competitor she is,” Venus said after the first semi-final. “It would be a dream to see her on the opposite side of the net on Saturday.”

Speaking after her victory, Serena returned her sister’s praise:

“I am really proud of Venus – she is a total inspiration,” she said. “I am really happy for her and to be in the final together is a dream for us. She is my toughest opponent, no-one has ever beaten me as much as Venus. I feel no matter what that we have both won after all we have been through. I know a Williams is going to win this tournament.”

On the men’s side, four-time Melbourne champion Roger Federer reached his sixth Australian Open final by defeating Swiss countryman Stan Wawrinka 7-5 6-3 1-6 4-6 6-3 and to move within one win of an 18th Grand Slam title.

Federer, 35, is the oldest man to reach a Grand Slam singles final since 39-year-old Ken Rosewall at the 1974 US Open. Wawrinka won the tournament at Melbourne Park in 2014.

“I’ll leave all the energy here in Australia, and then I can relax after here,” said Federer, who will contest his 28th major final on Sunday. “It’s gone much better than I thought it would. That’s also what I was telling myself in the fifth set. I was talking to myself, saying like, ‘Just relax, man. The comeback is so great already. Let it fly off your racquet and just see what happens’.

“I think that’s the mindset I got to have as well in the finals – a nothing-to-lose mentality. It’s been nice these last six matches to have that mentality. It worked very well, so I’ll keep that up.”

On Sunday, the top-ranked Swiss will play his 100th Australian Open match against either Rafael Nadal or Grigor Dimitrov. Nadal and Dimitrov will face off in Friday’s second semifinal.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 26: Serena Williams of the United States serves in her semifinal match against Mirjana Lucic-Baroni of Croatia on day 11 of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 26, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)