Williams Sisters to Meet at Wimbledon Semifinals

W I M B L E D O N, England, July 4 -- Venus and Serena Williams won Fourthof July matches today to set up a historic all-sister semifinalat Wimbledon.

The eighth-seeded Serena led off by beating Lisa Raymond 6-2,6-0 in only 41 minutes on Court 1.

Serena then raced over to Centre Court to watch the fifth-seededVenus record a pulsating 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over top-seeded MartinaHingis in just over two hours.

The sisters have played each other four times, with Venusleading 3-1. Thursday’s match will be the first Grand Slamsemifinal between sisters.

In a women’s quarterfinal between two unseeded players,17-year-old Jelena Dokic beat Magui Serna of Spain 6-3, 6-2 in 66minutes. Last year, Dokic ousted Hingis in the first round andreached the quarterfinals.

Dokic will meet the winner of the match between defendingchampion Lindsay Davenport, the seeded No. 2, and No. 6 MonicaSeles.

Finesse vs. Ferocious Hitting

While Serena Williams-Raymond was a one-sided mismatch, theVenus Williams-Hingis showdown produced spectacular tennis fromboth players.

The match featured the all-court finesse of Hingis against theferocious hitting of Williams. While many points ended quickly withflashing winners, other rallies lasted more than 20 shots.

The match ended with Williams pounding an ace, her eighth of theday. She let out a shriek, bounded to the net and leaped high intothe air with her left arm extended.

Williams went to the side of the court to grasp a large Americanflag unfurled by fans near the front row.

With a towel draped over her shoulders, she mouthed“Unbelievable” as she soaked in a standing ovation.

Proud Papa

In the guest box, Serena beamed and clenched her fists, whilefather Richard Williams doffed his cap and bounced up and down.

“It feels phenomenal,” Richard Williams said.

The elder Williams said he would bet 50 pounds — $75 — on eachof his daughters, but would not watch Thursday’s match. He plans toattend a funeral instead.