Now it’s Maria Sharapova’s turn at Wimbledon to try to put an end to Serena Williams’ bid for the third leg of a calendar-year Grand Slam — and a fourth consecutive major title.
The No. 1-seeded Williams takes a 26-match Grand Slam winning streak, which began at last year’s US Open, into her semifinal Thursday at the All England Club against No. 4 Sharapova.
And while Sharapova has spent time atop the rankings, too, and owns five major titles of her own, this has not been much of a rivalry on the court.
Off the courtIJ Well, that’s another story. Most infamously, in the run-up to Wimbledon two years ago, they exchanged barbs, via the media, connected to their respective love lives.
But with rackets in their hands, this has been a one-way street: Williams has won 17 of their 19 career meetings, including the past 16 in a row. Both of Sharapova’s victories in the series came all the way back in 2004; one of those was in the Wimbledon final.
Their most recent matchup came in the final of the Australian Open in January, when Williams won in straight sets for her 19th Grand Slam title. Williams then won the French Open last month for No. 20.
It hasn’t always come easily, however. Williams needed to pull out five three-setters on the red clay of Roland Garros, for example. And she’s dealt with deficits on Wimbledon’s grass, too, dropping the first set both against Britain’s Heather Watson in the third round, and Azarenka in the quarterfinals.
RADWANSKA VS MUGURUZA
They’ve split their previous four matches, but Muguruza has won both meetings in 2015. Radwanska, 26, was the runner-up at Wimbledon in 2013 and will be participating in her fourth major semifinal; it’s the first for Muguruza, 21. AP