US Open | Serena empties to get into the semifinals and Azarenka awaits

Always on the verge of physical collapse, with that deep breath that resonates in an Arthur Ashe without an audience, with a face of permanent suffering, but with a race of champion that moves her towards the success she has pursued since returning from motherhood in May 2018, Serena Williams is still alive at the US Open. The American, who would rather die on the track than be humiliated, He came back from a match that was complicated from the start against Tsvetana Pironkova (4-6, 6-3 and 6-2) in a much talked about and praised duel of mothers in the quarterfinals of the US Open.

There will be another, because Serena will play her 39th Grand Slam semifinals (14th in New York) this Thursday against a rival against whom she will have to raise her level to the maximum if she wants to win, Victoria Azarenka, another proud mother who swept Elise Mertens (6 -1 and 6-0). “If you have already given birth, anything seems acceptable to you,” said the African American, who will find in the Belarusian the real touchstone that will tell her if she can win this tournament. From the outset and seen what is seen, it does not seem easy, because Vika is immense to the rest and everything comes out almost without moving from the site and directs the games as she wants. Without great fanfare, at the age of 31 he totally disarmed Mertens, 24, one of the best this year. “I executed my game plan whenever I wanted,” boasted Azarenka, one of the privileged ones, like Serena, who lives in a rented house and not in a hotel, with her mother and her son, Leo.

For now, Williams' crusade continues for that 24th major title that resists her and with which she would equal Margaret Court's absolute record. And the unexpected adventure of Pironkova ended, a 32-year-old player who had not played for three years to focus on motherhood and who entered the tournament without ranking after a career shooting discreetly, with a negative balance of victories and defeats (166-219), a title and the 2010 Wimbledon semi-finals and the 2016 Roland Garros quarterfinals as best results in Slams.

Serena suffered a lot in the first set, at some point it would even be said that she was even on the verge of tears, with a face of helplessness and overwhelming anguish. At the beginning of the second set she fell and it was difficult for her to get up, but a little later the genius of returning a rest with her left hand when she is right-handed came out of the hat and everything began to go to her face. It was activated and his serve (20 aces, an outrage) got him out of a lot of trouble and he looked for the weak right hand of Pironkova, a tennis player perhaps too cold but possessing, yes, a more than remarkable backhand, went in tow but without surrendering. He did not make it easy for the best of always. Chance had nothing to do with him eliminating Muguruza, Vekic and Cornet. The importance of the moment and the greatness of his rival, who had beaten him in his four previous matches, perhaps he could.

Results of the day.