U.S. Open: Serena Williams Reaches Semi-Final With Tonight’s Win

Photo credit: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AFP/Getty

Serena Williams is inching closer to earning a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title. 

On Tuesday, the tennis great defeated Karolina Pliskova 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the semi-finals of the U.S. Open for the 12th time in her professional career. 

“I felt so bad because everyone out here was cheering and I wasn’t winning and I thought I’ve got to try harder, I’ve got to do harder. I really feel like right now I’m playing free because I was having a baby this time last year, so I have nothing to prove. I’m just on my way (back) on the tour and doing the best I can,” the Guardian reports Williams saying during an on-court interview. 

In response to legendary filmmaker Spike Lee likening watching Williams play to watching Muhammad Ali or Michael Jordan play their respective sports, she said: “To be compared to Ali or Jordan. I really have no words. Namely Ali, because he did so much for the sport and so much for the world, for everyone. That’s what I want to do. It’s not what I do out here, but how I can inspire people off the court. That’s my dream.” 

Serena is set to play Anastasija Sevastova in the semi-finals on Thursday.