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Serena Williams survives first set scare to make US Open semifinals

Serena Williams has had to dig deep to make the US Open women's singles semi-finals.

The third seed was pushed by Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova in this morning's quarter-final, taking the first set off the American.

However in what's become a trend in recent matches in New York, Williams has learned to roll with the punches when down.

The 23 time Grand-Slam singles winner hit back in the second and third sets, crushing her unseeded opponent 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

After the match, Williams praised her rival's performance and resilience especially considering she'd been out of professional tennis for three years on maternity leave.

"It shows me how tough mums are! Whenever you can birth a baby, honestly you can do anything. We saw that today, she played unbelievable.

"I could barely win a match when I came back, so she's incredible. Her baby has to be younger than mine - you play a match, go home and you're still changing diapers, it's like a double life.

"I was feeling it a little in my legs and an hour in, for some reason, I got more energy. I can't do that if I want to keep winning.

"I play again tomorrow, I am used to playing back to back to back, but I need to figure out how to start a little bit faster.

"I keep fighting, I never give up. You've got to keep going."

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