FanHouse Elena Dementieva

DOHA, Qatar (AP) -- Serena Williams became the first player to clinch a spot in the semifinals of the WTA Sony Ericsson Championships on Thursday, defeating Elena Dementieva 6-2, 6-4 for her third straight win in the tournament's round-robin group phase.

Her sister Venus, the defending champion, stayed alive by beating Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-4 for her first win in three matches. She needs Kuznetsova to beat Dementieva on Friday to have a chance of advancing to the semifinals.

Earlier, Caroline Wozniacki overcame severe leg cramps and a tenacious Vera Zvonareva to win 6-0, 6-7 (3), 6-4.

Serena and Venus Williams have plenty of experience playing against each other. But you wouldn't have been able to tell that by the way the two played when they faced off for the 22nd career time on Wednesday in the WTA Tour Championships in Doha.

It took Serena almost three hours and a full three sets (including a third set tiebreak) to top her older sister 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(4) in a somewhat sloppy match. They didn't play well at the same time until the last three games of the match, where the two finally seemed to put forth their best effort.

With Serena trailing 5-6 in the third, both players turned on the jets and provided the fans in Doha with a brief glimpse of what they were hoping to see throughout the match. Asked what changed for her late in the third, Serena said, "I just tried to relax. Whenever I relax, I play better." Seems simple enough.

NEW YORK -- See how fast you can say this. And do it in one breath.

"Well, this was pretty big, too, so was against Jankovic at Wimbledon, I think it means more to me though since this is the U.S. Open. You know, I had the whole crowd cheering for me, so much support, I was struggling a little with my leg, and just, I don't, the whole thing was just amazing. I can't believe I won!"

Nope. Melanie Oudin said it way, way faster. With a smile on her face.

Oudin, the American teen, beat No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva 5-7, 6-4,6-3 Thursday in the second round at the U.S. Open. She beat Jelena Jankovic in July at Wimbledon to become a one-hit wonder.

This was her second hit.

---

---

Forget the past, forget the next round, 17-year-old American Melanie Oudin shocked the crowds at the US Open by pulling the biggest upset so far in the tournament on Thursday.

The 70th-ranked Oudin beat No. 4-seeded Elena Dementieva 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the third round. Dementieva -- a serious contender thought to have a major shot at possibly winning the Open -- won easily in the first round of the tournament, beating qualifier Camille Pin 6-1, 6-2.

In 2008, Oudin was knocked out of the Open in the first round by Australian Jessica Moore in straight sets. This marks the furthest she has advanced in the US Open. Last year, Dementieva made it to the semifinals where she lost 4-6, 4-6 to Jelena Jankovic.

---

---

In a classic Wimbledon semifinal match that left both players exhausted and the spectators exhilarated, Serena Williams beat Elena Dementieva 6-7, 7-5, 8-6 to advance to the Wimbledon final.

"It was really, really tough," Williams said afterward. "Elena played so well and we gave the crowd a wonderful match."

Dementieva played very well in the early going, and it looked like it was going to be her day. She broke Williams' serve in the first game, and although Williams returned the favor in the second game, Dementieva was strong throughout, winning the first set 7-6.

---

---

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- When Roger Federer misfired on an important shot Friday, his knees buckled and he stomped behind the baseline, miffed at his mere mortality.

The moment quickly passed, and Federer advanced to the second week at Wimbledon by beating Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-1.

Federer lost a set for first time this week, with two errant forehands costing him the tiebreaker. That merely extended his Centre Court workout by half an hour.

The tears were not just from back pain, of course. We keep waiting for the fairy tale ending for Jelena Dokic, but it's not coming no matter how hard she works for it, how much she suffers for it.

Dokic has been through so much that you just want something good to happen for her. And it was just about to on Thursday in the second round of the French Open. This impossible comeback of hers had her about to eliminate fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva, a legitimate contender in Paris. Dokic won the first set and was even in the second when her back went out.

She went to her chair and started crying, and a trainer did the best that could be done. So she went back out, took a lead, but then couldn't run faster than a typical walk. She kept trying, but it was hopeless, and you felt hopeless just watching.

---

---

They had to gang up on Rafael Nadal. It was a tag-team effort in Madrid: First, Novak Djokovic softened him up with a four-hour death match. Nadal won. The next day, Roger Federer cleaned up on a tired Nadal with a sore knee.

But the point is, Nadal did fall on clay. It can be done! No one knew that for sure.

So we start the French Open on Sunday, the year's second major. Nadal has won it four years in a row. Can he be stopped now?

American Serena Williams has been eliminated from the women's singles competition at the Olympic Games, falling to Russia's Elena Dementieva 3–6, 6–4, 6–3.

It's not much of an upset -- Williams was seeded fourth; Dementieva was seeded fifth -- but it is a huge disappointment to Williams, who had high hopes for these Games after an injury forced her to stay home in 2004.

Williams and sister Venus remain alive in the doubles competition and are favored to win the gold, which they also won in 2000. Venus plays China's Na Li in singles today.

American Serena Williams has been eliminated from the women's singles competition at the Olympic Games, falling to Russia's Elena Dementieva 3–6, 6–4, 6–3.

It's not much of an upset -- Williams was seeded fourth; Dementieva was seeded fifth -- but it is a huge disappointment to Williams, who had high hopes for these Games after an injury forced her to stay home in 2004.

Williams and sister Venus remain alive in the doubles competition and are favored to win the gold, which they also won in 2000. Venus plays China's Na Li in singles today.