Sports > Serena Williams Outsed From French Open

ena Williams 6-4, 6-3 and Advances to Semifinals at French Open

American Serena Williams reacts during her loss to Belgium's Justine Henin at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris. (Regis Duvignau/Reuters)

Justine Henin beat Serena Williams 6-4, 6-3 and advanced to the semifinals at the French Open.

The meeting was their first at Roland Garros since in 2003, when a semifinal victory by Henin included boos for Williams and left a bitter aftertaste on both sides.

The lone jeers this time came when a frustrated Williams slammed her racket to the clay when she lost serve in the opening game of the second set. The boos quickly subsided, and while the crowd favored the French-speaking Henin, they applauded Williams when she left the court after the match.

There was no evident acrimony between the players, either. Williams offered only a perfunctory handshake following their match four years ago, but this time when she dumped a forehand in the net on match point, she smiled as she and Henin engaged in a genial exchange at the net.

With the victory, Henin extended her Open era-record winning streak at Roland Garros of 31 consecutive sets. The Belgian is two rounds from becoming the first woman to win three consecutive French Open titles since Monica Seles in 1990-92.

2007-06-06