Australian Open: Serena, Osaka On Winning Cruise To Semifinals

Former World No. 1 Serena Williams fought through a huge test of her Australian Open title credentials to beat Simona Halep 6-3 6-3 in a high-quality quarterfinal and reach the last four at Melbourne Park for the ninth time on Tuesday.

The 39-year-old American went toe-to-toe with the Romanian second seed over 80 engrossing minutes on Rod Laver Arena before she was finally able to move to within two victories of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title.

Williams, who mixed 24 winners with 33 unforced errors over the contest, has not won a major since her seventh Australian Open triumph in 2017 and next faces in-form Japanese third seed Naomi Osaka with a place in the final on the line.

"It's so good to see someone [@naomiosaka] that is so inspiring on both things." ?

Even 7️⃣x #AusOpen champion @serenawilliams draws inspiration from her #AO2021 semifinal opponent ? pic.twitter.com/yzASWfp1Gn

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 16, 2021

For Halep, who reached the semifinals last year and was losing finalist in 2018, it was back to the drawing board as she looks to add to her two Grand Slam titles, at the Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

Osaka and Serena moving towards each other in the Australian Open.

Osaka Too Much For Giant-Killing Hsieh

On a warm and muggy day at Rod Laver Arena, Osaka attacked Hsieh's weak serve with gusto and the Taiwanese giant killer quickly wilted under the pressure of her Grand Slam quarterfinal debut.

READ ALSO: Australian Open: Serena, Osaka Off To Winning Start

Osaka had a torrid time in her last Australian Open clash with Hsieh in 2019, having to come back from a set and a break down on the way to claiming the championship.

So the Japanese third seed was thrilled with her form against the Taiwanese maverick in a 66-minute clinic.

"Yeah, definitely really happy," 23-year-old Osaka said on-court.

"Really happy with how I played today. Every time I play her it's a real battle and, despite the score, this was again a real battle today."

Osaka's reward will be a semifinal against either Serena Williams or Simona Halep, the pair having a rematch of the 2019 Wimbledon final in the evening session at Rod Laver Arena.

"I always watch Serena's matches, anyway," said Osaka, who has never failed to win a Grand Slam after making the quarterfinals.

"Definitely going to be real fun."

While Osaka has suffered some major wobbles in the past, there was no hint of frustration from her despite Hsieh saving two match points. She bided her time to claim the win on the third when an overwhelmed Hsieh floated a sliced backhand long.

"I would say it makes me a bit more calm, realising that even when my back was against the wall, I still had chances," said Osaka, who saved two match points in a cliffhanger against Garbine Muguruza in her previous match.

"Even today when I had two match points and she saved them ... I was a bit more calm."