Venus, Capriati set for semifinal match

NEW YORK -- Venus Williams was erratic, Jennifer Capriati was ecstatic. Now the winners of the year's first three Grand Slam titles will meet for a spot in the final of the fourth major.

Not a whole lot went right for Williams at the U.S. Open on Wednesday -- the 43 unforced errors, the 48 percent of first serves that missed the mark, the eight double-faults. Just enough did go the defending champion's way, though, to add up to a 6-3, 6-1 quarterfinal victory over Kim Clijsters.

Then the No. 2-seeded Capriati went out and pounded her way to a 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 8 Amelie Mauresmo to reach the semifinals here for the first time since 1991, before her well-documented decline.

"Everything's kind of changed. Look at how the U.S. Open has changed. They've got a brand new huge stadium. The Open has really blown up a lot, and tennis, in general, is so popular. I'm glad that 10 years later I'm able to be part of it," Capriati said.

"I'm very happy, joyous, ecstatic. It's a great sense of satisfaction -- and I'm very grateful, also."

Williams and Capriati have been alternately dominant in 2001, and they're the only two women who have not dropped a set so far at the Open. That will change in Friday's semifinals.

"It's going to be pretty tough. She's been playing well, but I've been playing well," said Capriati, who this week has a chance to take over the No. 1 ranking for the first time in her career.

"Hopefully, I can come out and play my best tennis."

Venus' younger sister, 10th-seeded Serena, will play No. 1 Martina Hingis in the other semifinal. They advanced Tuesday.

Capriati's renaissance blossomed with championships at the Australian and French Opens this year; Williams took her second straight title at Wimbledon.

"She's a very strong player. She does everything well. She hits the ball quite hard," Williams said, scouting her next opponent. "Nowadays, I don't really try to hit every ball hard anymore. Maybe I don't have as much pace on every shot as she does."

Williams has won all three of their previous meetings, including twice this year on hardcourts. That includes their most recent encounter, in the final of the Ericsson Open in March, when Capriati frittered away eight match points.

"Hopefully, I will have learned from that experience, from that match, and take advantage of my chances," Capriati said.

She and Mauresmo slugged it out from the baseline Wednesday, trading powerful strokes and rarely resorting to trickery. Capriati managed to limit the number of errors better than Mauresmo.

Williams didn't limit hers, but wound up OK.

Case in point: Serving for the first set, Williams sent an 88 mph knuckler of a second serve that was kicked up by the swirling air at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The suddenly wind-wrapped ball could have wandered out or it could have led to a gimme return.

Instead, it dropped in, Clijsters, a French Open finalist, swung mightily -- and she missed mightily, turning her head to watch the ball settle by the wall at the back of the court.

She sighed, Williams smiled. And so went the match -- keeping alive the possibility that No. 4 Williams could meet her sister in a Grand Slam tournament final for the first time.

More often than not, Williams-Clijsters came down to who would be quickest to err, rather than being a contest filled with glittering groundstrokes. The players combined for 81 unforced errors and 14 double-faults in just 65 minutes.

It was downright sloppy at times.

They traded breaks of serve in the first two games of the match, and each wasted break opportunities in the next two games.

In the fourth game, on one of the 11 break-point chances Williams tossed away overall, she sent a forehand about 5 feet out, then leaned over, slapped her left hand on her knee and looked up as if to say, "Why can't I get going today?"

"When she's on top of her game, she doesn't make that many unforced errors. But she's always a player that makes a lot of good points and also unforced errors," said Clijsters, cheered on from courtside by boyfriend Lleyton Hewitt, who beat Tommy Haas in four sets earlier Wednesday to reach the quarterfinals.

"So that's why it's hard to get in your rhythm and make the chances that you get."

The difference-makers? Williams produced 21 winners, compared to just five for the fifth-seeded Belgian. And Williams conjured up seven aces to Clijsters' one.

Williams took control in the seventh game, winning one of the match's longer rallies with a crackling forehand down the line to open a flood that saw her take nine of the last 10 games.

In a finish as fitting as it was anticlimactic, Clijsters double-faulted to end her career-best U.S. Open showing.

Anticipating a possible encounter for the title Saturday night against her sister, Williams said: "Just one more match to go for each of us, though we're up against some pretty good players.

"I'm hoping to be in the final -- 8 o'clock sharp at the dance."

She'll have to contend with Capriati first.