Sloane Stephens, above, returns a shot from Venus Williams during her triumph in the semifinal round of the U.S. Open. (Seth Wenig/AP)In a winding U.S. Open semifinal of breathless rallies, ascending quality and an impromptu standing ovation from a riveted crowd, a virtuoso display of defensive tennis won out Thursday night in Arthur Ashe Stadium. As it became near-impossible for Venus Williams to get a ball past Sloane Stephens, no matter how she blasted her strokes, Stephens ran “my tail off,” as she put it, all the way to her first Grand Slam final. Venus Williams reached the final of two Grand Slam events in 2017 but fell just short in the U.S. Open. 48-ranked Yulia Putintseva, 6-7 (4-7), 6-0, 6-4, beat some Grand Slam champions in Petra Kvitova, Angelique Kerber, continued.

Source: Washington Post September 08, 2017 02:17 UTC