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Willams in Aussie Open final

January 29, 2015

Top seed Serena Williams outplayed fellow American Madison Keys to advance to her sixth Australian Open final with a 7-6, 6-2 win in Melbourne. Williams plays Russian Maria Sharapova in Saturday's decider.

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Serena Williams Tennis Australian Open 29.01.2015
Image: Getty Images/I. Kato

World number one Serena Williams beat unseeded player Madison Keys on Thursday in Melbourne after the 19-year-old saved eight match points in the gripping semi-final.

Williams was quick to praise her compatriot. "She pushed me hard the first set and I had to dig deep mentally to get through that," Williams said in a courtside interview.

"I'm really excited to be in the final again. I didn't come here with that expectation so it's exciting."

Keys came out swinging in a match with 25 aces but could not match Williams as she took the first set and went up a break early in the second. Keys gave away a double-fault to make it 4-1.

Saving seven match points, Keys forced Williams to serve it out where she saved one more match point off Williams' serve before the champion ended the match with an ace to advance to the final.

Thursday's win ensures Williams retains the world number one ranking she has held for more than 100 weeks.

Williams, 33, the oldest woman to ever make the Australian hard-court Grand slam in the Open era, will play her 23rd final in a major on Thursday.

Williams has made the Australian Open final five times previously, winning every time and beating Maria Sharapova in 2007. Williams retains a 16-2 record over Sharapova.

Second seed Russian Sharapova beat compatriot Ekaterina Makaraova 6-3, 6-2 at the Rod Laver Arena to ensure her place in the final.

jlw/jr (Reuters, AFP)