KEY POINTS:
NEW YORK - Wimbledon champion Venus Williams was pushed to the limit before beating third seed Jelena Jankovic of Serbia 4-6 6-1 7-6 today to reach the US Open semi-finals.
Twice champion Williams, the 12th seed, belted a forehand winner to capture the third-set tiebreak 7-4 and set up a clash with top seed Justine Henin of Belgium on Saturday (NZ time).
Fourth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, the 2004 champion, will play sixth-seeded compatriot Anna Chakvetadze in the other semi.
Jankovic charged into a 4-1 lead after claiming two service breaks in the hard-hitting first set. She gave one break back but held serve in the 10th game to clinch it.
Williams raised her level in response, breaking the Serb in every one of her service games in the second set to draw level.
The pressure-packed third set stayed on serve until the tiebreak.
Williams moved into a 5-1 lead after a series of forehand errors by Jankovic, who clawed back to 6-4 before the Wimbledon champion cracked her winning forehand to end the two-hour, 27-minute match.
"Well done to Venus," Jankovic told the crowd. "She played unbelievable. She fought well. She deserved to win."
Williams had lost her last three matches to Jankovic.
"Jelena is an unbelievable competitor," she said. "It went the distance. It was awesome."
- REUTERS