11 July,2017 08:24 AM IST | London | Agencies
Venus Williams became the oldest woman to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 23 years when the 37-year-old beat Ana Konjuh in the fourth round yesterday
Venus Williams
US Venus Williams returns against Croatia's Ana Konjuh during their fourth round match at Wimbledon in London yesterday. Pic/PTI
Venus Williams became the oldest woman to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 23 years when the 37-year-old beat Ana Konjuh in the fourth round yesterday. Williams, the US 10th seed, beat the Croatian 27th seed 6-3, 6-2 on Centre Court, becoming the oldest player to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals since Martina Navratilova in 1994.
At 19, Konjuh was not even born when five-time champion Williams made her Wimbledon debut in 1997. Williams faces French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in today's quarter-finals.
The task of taking on Ostapenko is one for which Williams may want to do her homework before their clash, after admitting she missed the Latvian's unexpected run to the Roland Garros title.
"I haven't seen her play a lot," said Williams. "I didn't watch any of the French when I was finished with it. I know she had an amazing moment there. She's riding on that momentum. It's just been such an amazing result for her. So I'm definitely really happy for her."
But according to Williams it will be coach David Witt who pays the closest attention to footage of Ostapenko on grass. "I think my coach will probably look at the matches more than I will," Williams said. "I think I'll see what happens when I get out there. I'm sure she hits well off all sides. I have to see what the nuances are once the game starts, because you can't necessarily plan for those."
