Sharapova first to advance to finals
She and Serena will face off in finals
MELBOURNE, Australia — Maria Sharapova reached the Australian Open final for the fourth time, beating fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-3, 6-2 in a lopsided semifinal today.
The se cond- r anked Sharapova needed 10 minutes to hold in her opening service game, fending off two break points. She responded to the only service break against her in the first set by winning six straight games and seizing control of the match from the 10th-seeded Makarova, who had taken only one set off her in five previous matches.
In the other women’s semifinal, Serena Williams weathered a barrage of big serves and heavy groundstrokes in the first set before beating 19-year-old Madison Keys 7-6 (5), 6-2 to set up an Australian Open final against Sharapova.
Williams dominated the second set of the all-American semifinal, breaking Keys’ serve twice. Keys saved seven match points on serve in the penultimate game before Williams closed with an ace on her ninth match point.
Williams, an 18-time major winner, is back in the final here for the first time since winning her fifth Australian title in 2010.
The win ensured Williams will retain the top ranking, regardless of the outcome against No. 2 Sharapova. The American has a 16-2 record against Sharapova, including the last 15.
Sharapova won the Australia Open title in 2008 but was beaten in the championship matches in 2007, by then unseeded Serena Williams, and in 2012 by Victoria Azarenka.
The five-time major winner opened the 2015 season in confident style by winning the Brisbane International title but had a close call in the second round here, having to save match points against No. 150-ranked Russian qualifier Alexandra Panova. Since then, she hasn’t faced a set point.
“It’s been a strange road for me to get to the finals, but I’m happy,” said Sharapova, who is now into her 10th Grand Slam final. “Came from behind in a few, really behind in one — saving match points. I felt like I was given a second chance. I just wanted to take my chances.”
In a match Wednesday, No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic advanced to his 25th semifinal at a Grand Slam tournament.
Djokovic was simply overpowering as he beat Canadian Milos Raonic 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-2 in exactly two hours at Rod Laver Arena, never facing a break point.
The four-time champion, who has dropped his serve only once through five matches, lined up defending champ Stan Wawrinka on Friday.
“I’m a self-critic, but tonight there was not much I could complain about,” Djokovic said. “From the first game until the last, I played the way I wanted. I feel very good about my game at the moment.”
The other men’s match Wednesday was also a threesetter, but it got interesting at the end. Wawrinka beat U.S. Open finalist Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (6), letting slip a 6-1 lead in the third-set tiebreaker and eventually needing six match points to close the victory.
Nishikori made a big error at the wrong time, attempting a drop shot from the back of the court that bundled into the net. That set up another match point for Wawrinka, which he converted with an ace, his 20th of the match.
“Phew, I’m still nervous,” Wawrinka said in his postmatch interview. “It’s never easy with his returning. You have to go for it.”