Williams knocks champion out of Wimbledon

Serena Williams was at her brilliant and brutal best on Wimbledon’s Centre Court today as she sent defending champion Petra Kvitova home at the quarter-final stage.

Without a grand slam title since her fourth Wimbledon two years ago – her 13th in total – she is in London with a point to prove and sent out a clear warning sign of her intentions with a 6-3 7-5 win.

The American served up 13 aces and hit 27 winners in the process, leaving Kvitova with little hope or chance of continuing her title defence.

Williams took control of her eagerly-anticipated quarter-final with defending champion Petra Kvitova, winning the opening set in just 30 minutes.

The four-time winner was at her punishing best as she pressed towards what would be an eighth Wimbledon semi-final, unleashing a barrage of winners – 17 in total – and keeping her fancied opponent on the back foot with some brutal serving in a 6-3 win.

Although not supported by the surprising number of vacant seats inside Centre Court, a high-quality tussle was expected between two players who have won five Wimbledon singles titles between them, and that proved to be the case from the opening point.

Kvitova took it with a volley after an eight-shot rally and, when she smashed to 0-30, she had an early window of opportunity. Williams served her way out of trouble, though, sending down the first of seven first-set aces on her way to taking the game.

Taking confidence from that early escape, she was almost unplayable on serve in the subsequent games, hitting winners that were pinned to the lines when not blasting Kvitova off the court with her first shot.

The break she needed to cement her dominance duly arrived in the sixth game – a wide backhand validating the second of three break points – and she duly held serve twice more herself to see the set out.

2 WIMBLEDON Kvitova

Such had been Williams' dominance that her first genuine error did not arrive until the 11th game when she wildly sent a forehand volley off-court when 30-15 behind.

She was finding Kvitova harder to deal with by this point, with the Czech hitting the lines with greater regularity, none more so than when she resisted a strong challenge to her serve in the fifth game of the second.

Although Williams never got a break point, she was at deuce twice and Kvitova needed to hold her nerve – particularly in the thick of a thrilling 16-shot rally – to stay in contention.

It appeared to be worth it when she earned herself a break and set point in the 10th game but, after failing to take it, she fell to pieces, losing her serve immediately after from 30-0. The crucial point was inexplicable too, planting a routine one-hander into the net after Williams had shanked a return.

That was all the encouragement Williams needed and she duly served out for the match, hitting three aces in the process to take her match total to 13.