Image Text:

FINAL: Serena Williams

SERENA WILLIAMS cruised past Elina Svitolina and into her 10th US Open final with a record-equaling 101st Singles success on Thursday (Sept 5).

The American icon, chasing a 24th Grand Slam crown after losing her past three major finals, outclassed the Croatian 6-3 6-1 in an hour.

It was sweet revenge for the 37-year-old after Svitolina stunned her at the Rio Olympics three years ago, although Williams was suffering from a shoulder injury in Brazil.

There was no sign of the ankle injury that Williams incurred earlier in the tournament, as she sealed a spot in the final almost exactly 20 years after appearing in her first US Open final - the huge gap in years securing another record.

Svitolina, a Wimbledon semi-finalist, squandered three break points in the opener and at 40-0 in the next game was broken to trail 2-0. Despite this explosive opening quarter of an hour, the contest fell flat with Williams dominating on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Williams got herself out of trouble when trailing 40-0 on her service game to make it 3-1, and then shifted into top gear to destroy the no.5 seed.

She breezed into her fourth out of the latest six Grand Slam finals, and is seeking to capture her seemingly elusive 24th major title. Victory would tie the long-standing record of Australia's Margaret Court 24 crowns.

However, Williams has tasted defeat in her past three major finals, in stark contrast to being unbeatable with eight successive Grand Slam triumphs from 2012-2015.

Yet it doesn’t appear that six-time US Open champion Williams will suffer another setback on her record-chasing feat, having surrendered just one set en route to the final at New York's Flushing Meadows.