Wimbledon 2008: Agnieszka Radwanska v Serena Williams - As It Happened

Preamble: After the 152min marathon that was Elena Dementieva v Nadia Petrova (Dementieva eventually winning 6-1, 6-7, 6-2 an going on to face Venus Williams in the semis), welcome, finally, to live coverage of the last of the women's quarter-finals.

And it's a fascinating clash in prospect - in a tournament of shocks, this could be yet another. Despite possessing a name that when said quickly sounds like a tape getting chewed up, Agnieszka Radwanska is one of the fastest rising stars in women's tennis. Already this year she's been to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, the last 16 of the French, and won tournaments at Pattaya City, Istanbul and, most significantly, on the grass at Eastbourne. That win on the south coast last month was a realization of the promise she showed on the green stuff when winning the juniors title at Wimbledon in 2005. A pushover she is not.

In fact, this morning in the betting only the Williams sisters were shorter odds for the title than young Agnieszka. The slight 19-year-old possesses a more graceful, less power-orientated game than many of her contemporaries, something that may test the never overly-mobile Serena. Williams, who's yet to drop a set in SW19 this year, may have her work cut out.

All that said, their one previous meeting, in Berlin this year, ended with a fairly emphatic 6-3, 6-1 win for Serena, and the Williams sisters have already beaten Radwanska and her partner Marta Domachowska in the doubles at SW19 this year. The danger is that Williams' strength - Serena is nearly 10kg heavier than her opponent - will overwhelm the youngster. Radwanska has to hope that her movement and finesse give her the edge.



A vision of the future: Niall McCaffrey writes to request the banning of the following: "Fist pumps", "meaningful glazing" and "toweling down between points". I'm thinking there might be a typo in there and that Niall has a problem with players staring at their entourages after every point, rather than some sort of vendetta against windows. Banning the fist pump, though? It narrows down the celebration options somewhat, doesn't it? Would you really prefer players pulling their t-shirts over their heads and sprinting round in circles? Or painfully coordinated dance routines?



Serena strides out in her cagoule, Radwanska in far more sensible outfit, given the heat.



The Naylor dept.: "You're right that Serena isn't overly-mobile, but how mobile do you have to be to move from one end of the court to the other, as your serve, then return of serve, wins you point after point?" writes our Gary. "Is this the lowest standard of women's tennis ever seen at Wimbledon? There are times when the whole credibility of the women's game depends on Venus and Serena (not that anyone connected with the game gives them any credit, of course)."



First set: *Radwanska 1-0 Williams Like your humble MBMer both players have been waiting a long time for this to get underway, but Radwanska seems to have dealt with delay just fine. Serena's radar is well off with a couple of forehands, so the young Pole claims a straightforward hold. That should help settle any nerves.



First set: Radwanska 1-1 Williams* Williams' howitzer of serve comes looming down on Radwanska (note to self: type that name very carefully), but one backhand return down the line serves notice that the outsider won't be bullied. Still, Williams holds fairly comfortably.



First set: *Radwanska 1-2 Williams Serena brings up 0-30 with a cracking forehand that leaves Radwanska standing and admiring, and a belting rally follows, with the youngster using clever length on the ball. She pulls it back to 30-all, but Serena's power quickly gives her the upper hand again and it's the first break.



First set: Radwanska 2-2 Williams* Strange jealousy dept: crowd members are drinking Pimms out of those plastic tumblers that certain coffee shops sell Frappabambachinos (or whatever they're called) in. I now have a strange longing for a drink with cucumber in, which, let's be honest, is just weird. Again Radwanska shows her excellent touch - not rushing anything, waiting for the ball - and earns a break point. Williams then taps a simple backhand into the net and we're all square once more.



First set: *Radwanska 3-2 Williams Radwanska is certainly trying to mix things up and get to the net whenever possible. Serena's yet to really assert herself in the contest. A simple hold.



First set: Radwanska 3-3 Williams* A man in the crowd with what appears to be a flannel on his head gets some of the "there's always one" treatment from the Beeb commentators. As a member of the "I've Always Had Fine Hair" Society myself I can sympathize. Two huge aces give Serena the game.



First set: *Radwanska 3-4 Williams Serena moves up to the net, which must be a formidable sight from the other side of the court. Radwanska must be feeling the pressure as she's let things slip to 15-40, thrown in a poor first serve, and allowed Serena to bury the second emphatically. Another break.



First set: Radwanska 3-5 Williams* A botched forehand has Williams stamping her foot in irritation and she seems to put some of that ire into her next serve, another ace. Some more super power hitting puts her one game from the first set.



First set: *Radwanska 4-5 Williams If this was TMS readers would be sending plastic tumblers of Pimms by courier as I write. Instead, I'll have to settle for this lukewarm Tango. Radwanska, under pressure, produces two winners to Williams' backhand side, then a booming (relatively speaking) serve of her own. Serena will have to serve for the set.



First set: Radwanska 4-6 Williams* Like a moody but well-trained maître d' Williams service has been a mixture of the excellent and the awful. A double fault gives Radwanska the advantage, but an unreturnable thump brings up two set points. Serena only needs one, and after 31 minutes she's 1-0 up.



Serena Williams wins the first set 6-4



Second set: *Radwanska 0-1 Williams A pounding backhand from Williams brings up 15-30 - you could tell she really meant that. Despite a spirited fightback from her opponent, another delightful shot down the line gives Williams the break. Radwanska is really up against it now.



Second set: Radwanska 0-2 Williams* Williams cracks a 114mph ace, then hammers a backhand down the line - Radwanska is struggling to hold on. That power difference is really beginning to tell.



Second set: *Radwanska 0-3 Williams In terms of the difference in power think a grizzly bear arm-wrestling a vole. Again Serena brings up a break point at 30-40, and this time Radwanska throws in a double fault. A double break for Williams - this could be over very shortly.



Second set: Radwanska 0-4 Williams* labeling Serena as nothing but a power merchant is certainly an unfair description - it's the key part of her game, one that few other women on the circuit can compete with, but it's not the be all and end all. As if to disprove my point she bangs in a huge ace to secure the game.



Second set: *Radwanska 0-5 Williams Chalk flies as Williams hits the line yet again with a forehand - see my earlier point about there being more to her game than brute strength. Radwanska hits long to give Williams another break point, and once more she needs no second invitation. That's six games in a row for Serena.



Second set: Radwanska 0-6 Williams* Well, after a two hour, 32 minute wait, it's all over in the blink of an eye. More big serving brings up three match points, and needs just the one.



Serena Williams wins 6-4, 6-0



Hmm. Well, despite my best efforts to big Radwanska up, that was a bit of a damp squib. The 19-year-old didn't play that badly, in fact the first set was very even, but in the second - a set that lasted just 19 minutes - Serena simply blew her opponent away in very impressive fashion. The All-Williams final is still on.

Cheers for those emails - all five were greatly appreciated. Cheerio!