Serena's pursuit

Venus is only one who stands in way of Serena Slam

Serena (left) and Venus have split 10 matches with one walkover. AP

MELBOURNE, Australia (Ticker) -- Serena and Venus Williams are the first sisters to square off in the final of the Australian Open, but their sibling rivalry in Grand Slam finals is nothing new.

The top-ranked sisters will oppose each other in the championship match in their fourth straight major on Saturday.

After losing five of their first six meetings, top-seeded Serena has gotten the better of her older sister of late -- winning the last four encounters -- with the last three coming in the finals of the French Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open last year.

In addition, the pair have contested the title match in the last five majors in which they have participated dating to the 2001 U.S. Open, which was won by Venus. Serena did not play in last year's Australian Open due to an ankle injury.

There is more on the line than usual in Saturday's match. Serena is one match win away from becoming the ninth woman all-time to have won each of the four Grand Slam singles titles during their careers, and only the fifth to hold all four majors at once.

The last woman to have achieved that feat is Steffi Graf from 1993-1994.

Final played indoors MELBOURNE, Jan 25 (Reuters) -- Venus and Serena Williams are playing Saturday's Australian Open women's final under a closed roof -- the first time in the tournament's history the entire final is being played indoors. Stifling temperatures of up to 42 degrees Celsius mean the tournament's Extreme Heat Policy is being implemented at Melbourne Park and the centre court roof -- closed on Friday due to excessive heat -- remains shut. Steffi Graf's victory over Chris Evert in the 1988 final was partially played under a closed roof due to rain. The roof was also closed on Friday when the Williams sisters teamed up to win the women's doubles final. The Extreme Heat Policy kicks in once temperatures hit 35 degrees Celsius, and the new Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) was 29. The WBGT is a combination of ambient air temperature, humidity, intensity of solar radiation and wind speed which together affect the ability of person to lose heat whether exercising or sitting still.

Although Serena does have a chance to win four straight Grand Slams, she cannot capture "the Grand Slam," winning all four majors during a calendar year, on Saturday.

The quest for the "Serena Slam" has not come without its tests. Serena needed three sets to get past first-round foe Emilie Loit. After cruising through the next four rounds, the 21-year-old American saved two match points and rallied from 1-5 down in the third set to defeat fourth seed Kim Clijsters, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, in the semifinals.

Serena will try to notch her fifth career Grand Slam and her 20th title overall.

After watching her younger sister gain all the glory last year, even taking her No. 1 ranking, Venus has come to Australia determined to claim her fifth major and 29th tournament triumph. She won both the Wimbledon and U.S. Open crowns in 2000 and 2001.

The 22-year-old Venus has not dropped a set during the tournament, even against No. 7 Daniela Hantuchova and fifth seed Justine Henin-Hardenne.

"Venus is actually playing a little better than me at this tournament, so I've got to pull something out of my back pocket to be able to go onto the next level," said Serena, who is 5-5 lifetime against Venus. "Obviously, I would like to win one more match. Granted, she wants to win this one as well, wants to get her year started. Who knows, she's probably trying to win all four as well. I'm just trying to win this one, too."

Both Serena and Venus have advanced to the final here for the first time.

On Friday, they captured their second Australian Open women's doubles crown. The top-seeded duo defeated the second-seeded pair of Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain and Paola Suarez of Argentina, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. It was their sixth Grand Slam doubles title.

Three more trophies are to be contested on Saturday.

Men's doubles top seeds Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and Canadian Daniel Nestor take on the eighth-seeded French pairing of Michael Llodra and Fabrice Santoro.

Knowles and Nestor seek their second Grand Slam title and 18th tournament victory together.

Llodra and Santoro are looking to win their first title together. They teamed up for the first time here last year, when they reached the final.

Also, top-seeded Romanians Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau battle No. 2 Scott Oudsema and Phillip Simmonds of Australia in the boys' doubles final, and Petra Cetkovska and Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic square off against Australians Casey Dellacqua and Adriana Szili.

 

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