NEW YORK—Lunging back with arms reflexively covering her rib cage, Kaia Kanepi was in self-preservation mode as a triple-digit body serve buzzed her hip. On a steamy Labor Day, Serena Williams' stifling serve was an occupational hazard for much of the match.
When she wasn't stretching Kanepi with the slider serve or scaring her with body heat, Williams did not permit a point on her first serve in the opening set. Despite donating a couple of breaks in the second set, Williams still made quick work of the powerful Estonian. The reigning U.S. Open champion scored a solid 6-3, 6-3 victory to march into her 12th Flushing Meadows quarterfinal—and first Grand Slam quarterfinal of the year.
The 17-time major champion's great expectations and high self-demands have contributed to her recent struggles at Slams. A notorious perfectionist, Serena wants so badly to succeed, she's beat herself up when making mistakes during majors. Facing a hard-hitting opponent, Williams spent most of her time punishing the ball. Aside from stumbling at the start and finish of the second set, Serena kept her serve and nerve in check, delivering three straight love holds to start.
It takes precision to beat Williams with pure pace, a challenge exacerbated today by the top seed's depth and a devious wind. The American flag atop Arthur Ashe Stadium flapped so frantically at one point, ball kids on court looked up to locate the cause of the noise. Perhaps that's why Williams, who covers the court much quicker than Kanepi, opted to play down the middle rather than creating shorter angles at times. She rapped an inside-out forehand winer to break for 5-3 and sealed the 31-minute first set with a 106 M.P.H. serve winner down the middle that spun sideways.
The two traded breaks to open the second set. Failing to move her feet, Serena shanked an easy overhead off her frame with a sardonic "WTF was that?" expression dropping serve at love as Kanepi ran off six straight points. "I didn't want to hit it," Williams confessed afterward. "I was like 'These are the shots Venus usually takes in doubles.' "
Then Williams lifted her level and took over, pounding a cross-court backhand and drawing a forehand error to score her third straight break for a 2-1 lead. She backed up the break with her seventh ace for 3-1.
Serving for the match at 5-2, an over-anxious Williams dumped a pair of doubles to donate the break. It was a minor stumbling block. She broke to end a hard-hitting, 65-minute clash. Despite the fact her serve and strokes weren't always in sync—Williams sometimes reached for the ball with her arms rather than stepping toward the ball and using her leg-drive to power though strikes—Serena has taken care of business, dropping just 17 games through four rounds. And it looks like she hasn't hit her high gear yet.
A relaxed Serena showed a sense of humor—and sense of relief—in her post-match interview with CBS' Mary Joe Fernandez.
"I finally made a quarterfinal this year!" a giggling Williams said while thrusting her arms in the air like a runner who had finally crossed a finish line. "I think I felt [the pressure] in my [last] serving game. I'm like, 'Can I please just make it to a Grand Slam quarterfinal this year?' Glad to do it here in New York."
Continuing her quest to join Chris Evert as the second woman to capture three straight U.S. Open titles in the Open era, Williams will play 11th-seeded Flavia Pennetta for a spot in the final four. Serena is 5-0 against the veteran Italian, winning the last nine sets they've played, including a 6-4, 6-3 victory in the 2009 U.S. Open quarterfinals.