The women's Wimbledon final is set with Sabine Lisicki, who defeated Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 2-6, 9-7 in one half of Wednesday''s semifinals action, going up against Marion Bartoli, who beat Kristen Flipkens 6-1, 6-2 earlier in the day.
Lisicki, a 2011 Wimbledon semifinalist who defeated defending champion Serena Williams, overpowered fourth-seeded Radwanska on Centre Court, winning 22 of her 30 points on serves in her first set, breaking only once.
Lisicki struggled in the second set but came back in the third. Radwanska was two points from snatching victory away from Lisicki before the German regained her composure to take the win.
"I had a lot of chances. Just two points from the match," said Radwanska. "Then she serve second serve like 100 miles per hour. Then, you know, it just turned the other way."
Lisicki credits her victory over Williams as a catalyst for Wimbledon title run.
"I thought, 'I've done it against Serena so you can do it today as well, just hang in there," said Lisicki. "It gave me so much confidence and I'm just so, so happy I was able to finish it."
Bartoli, a 2007 Wimbledon finalist who lost to Venus Williams in straight sets, never let up on the 20th-seed Flipkens. Bartoli got off to a hot start, facing one break point and finishing the game with her first of five aces. Flipkens, who had her right knee taped up, asked for a trainer after being broken for the second straight time at the start of the second set. Flipkens came out strong after the timeout, broke for the first and only time, making it 3-1 before Bartoli broke her again and took a 5-1 lead.
I'm not going to use it as an excuse, that's for sure. I mean, Marion played an amazing, good match," said Flipkens. "But I fell in the first set. Straightaway I didn't feel anything, but I fell on my bad knee. At that moment I didn't feel it, but a couple of games later I started to feel a really sharp pain like I had four weeks ago."
Saturday's final will be the second time in the in the 45-year Open era that two women who have never won a Grand Slam title at Wimbledon. Despite the fact that Lisicki is 3-1 against Bartoli, including a quarterfinal win at Wimbledon in 2011 in their last meeting, Amelie Mauresmo, the 2006 Wimbledon champion who coaches France's Fed Cup team, confident about Bartoli's chances of winning her first Wimbledon title.
"It's a good opportunity. She has experience at least," Mauresmo said of Bartoli. "Maybe it's going to help her for the final."
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