Venus Wins, Serena Falls at Wimbledon

Two Williams sisters entered and only one emerged Wednesday when Venus and Serena Williams completed their quarterfinals matches Wednesday at Wimbledon.


The No. 23-seeded Venus upset former Wimbledon champ and No. 2 seed Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-3 while Serena, fighting cramps or a muscle tear (depending who you ask) in her calf, lost a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 battle against world No. 1 Justine Henin.

"I wasn't even sure if I was going to go out and play," said Serena, who played with tape on her left calf and left thumb. "If I'd have been healthy, I think I would have won, 100 percent...The contact, like when the ball hit my racquet, the contact vibrated to my hand and it hurt really bad. I was really just struggling to hit some backhands out there. You know, I was just fighting. I wasn't even sure if I was going to go out and play. It was literally a last-minute decision."

Venus likewise put it to her opponent in the post-match conference.

"In my whole life, I've been a big-match player," Venus said. "It wasn't the ideal draw for her."

French No. 18 seed Marion Bartoli was a surprise semifinalist, taking out No. 31 seed Michaella Krajicek 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, and will next face Henin.

Scheduled for Thursday are (5) Svetlana Kuznetsova vs. (23) Venus Williams, and (6) Ana Ivanovic vs. (14) Nicole Vaidisova.