US Open: Williams has extra bite

Serena Williams eased into the semi-finals of the US Open early this morning when she won a tense and spectacular battle of the power girls.

She defeated America’s Lindsay Davenport 6-4 6-7 7-5 to earn a showdown tomorrow with world number one Martina Hingis on a night when Flushing Meadows was invaded by a swarm of insects.

Players and spectators swatted away the gnats with towels and programmes but it was Williams who finally drew the sting from Davenport despite a spate of generosity which she will need to cure before she faces Hingis.

It should all have been over so much sooner. Williams led by a set and 3-1, squandered two match points in the second set tie-break, a 3-0 lead in the third and sprayed 40 unforced errors around Arthur Ashe stadium.

But when the end came it arrived in typically Williams fashion, a surge of turbo-charged power, a ripping cross-court forehand winner and a great shout of ‘‘Yes’’.

The victory keeps alive hopes of the Williams sisters - Venus was due to meet Belgium’s Kim Clijsters later tonight - facing each other in a Grand Slam final for the first time on Saturday night in front of a prime time television audience here.

‘‘I’m pretty happy,’’ said Williams. ‘‘I’m tired of losing close matches. Everybody points out the close matches I lost but you have got to let that go else you’d be in a hole forever.

‘‘Venus told me just the other day when we were watching a match on television that a champion in tight situations always pulls through. She told me not to be nervous and I remembered that.

‘‘I should have been more serious in the past. I’m tired of losing in the quarter-finals. I want to go three steps further.’’

She admitted that she would have to reduce the errors against Hingis, someone she has struggled against in the past, if the dream Williams final was to take place.

‘‘Sometimes you have to use more brain than brawn,’’ said Serena. ‘‘But whatever has happened against Hingis before is in the past. She wants the title as much as I do so I just have to go for it.’’

Meanwhile, Davenport said: ‘‘She’s a great competitor. She has the game to overpower Hingis. But Serena can hit a lot of unforced errors. It will depend on her ratio of those to winners.’’

Davenport, however, predicted it would be older sister Venus who would hold the title aloft on Saturday.

‘‘Venus is a better player than Serena,’’ said Davenport. ‘‘If I had a bet I’d put my money on Venus. The players left are all great but if she plays well it’s tough for anyone to beat her.’’

World number one Gustavo Kuerten smashed down 18 aces to book his place in the men’s quarter-finals when he defeated Spain’s Albert Costa 6-4 6-4 7-6 to walk into a showdown with Russia’s Yevgeny Kafelnikov.

‘‘I was a bit nervous but I played with a lot of heart,’’ said Kuerten. ‘‘I was a little bit tired from the other night but I think I did a good job. I’m serving well. On the big points I’m going for the ace and it’s working.’’

Rapidly-improving American Andy Roddick cruised into the first Grand Slam quarter-final of his career, brushing aside Spaniard Tommy Robredo 6-2 6-2 6-4.

Meanwhile, Pete Sampras was due to play Andre Agassi in the duel of the golden oldies late tonight for a place in the semi-finals.

For Sampras, who has not failed to win at least one Grand Slam each year since 1992, it is an opportunity to salvage a dreadful year.

‘‘It seems like we’re both peaking at the same time,’’ said Sampras. ‘‘There’s a lot of respect and a lot of history there. It’s hopefully going to be a classic that we can all remember. It will come down to how well I serve and how he returns.

‘‘I’ve had a few challenges over the years, but winning this tournament is one of the biggest. To play Rafter in the round of 16 and back it up against Andre is about as tough as it’s going to get. It’s a huge challenge but I feel I’m up to it.’’