Wimbledon 2012 Live: Serena vs Azarenka in Women's Semifinals

It's down to the final four in the Wimbledon 2012 women's singles tournament and only one of the four remaining players have ever gone beyond the semifinal stage. But that one player, Serena Williams, the no. 6-seed player is not only the favorite of the remaining four to win the title, she's already proven herself time and again at the Championships by lifting the trophy four times previously - in 2002, 2003, 2009, and 2010. So, when she faces higher ranked world no. 2 Victoria Azarenka on the second match at Centre Court, the fans of women's tennis around the world will be focused on this encounter. Watch the Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinals showdown between Serena and Azarenka live here.

Williams leads Azarenka in their head-to-head series, 7-1. She has won their last five meetings which included three encounters at Grand Slams including a straight set demolition of the Belorussian in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2009. Their most recent encounter this year, at the finals in Madrid, it was the American who emerged as the victor via a 61 63 score. Much as Serena appear to be the heavy favorite for this encounter, she has seemed vulnerable as of late. Serena struggled to get past her third and fourth round opponents although she did look solid in dethroning 2011 champion Petra Kvitova in the quarterfinals. As for Azarenka, she reached the semifinal stage without dropping a set including a fourth round demolition of former world no. 1 Ana Ivanovic with the loss of just one game.

Serena vs Azarenka Head-to-Head

2008 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD R32 S. Williams6-3 6-4
2009 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD R16 S. Williams3-6 4-2
2009 MIAMI HARD F V.Azarenka6-3 6-1
2009 WIMBLEDON GRASS Q S. Williams6-2 6-3
2010 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD Q S. Williams4-6 7-6(4) 6-2
2011 TORONTO HARD S S. Williams6-3 6-3
2011 US OPEN HARD R32 S. Williams6-1 7-6(5)
2012 MADRID CLAY F S. Williams6-1 6-3

Azarenka refuses to be unfazed with her not so impressive record against Serena. "I don't really like to look back in history because every time you step on court it's a new story," she said. "You kind of write your own history every time. Serena is a great champion. It's going to be a tough match, but that's what you expect to have in semi-finals. We've had good matches, we've had bad matches. We'll see." Azarenka will be going into the match knowing that if she wins, she will regain her no. 1 ranking which she lost to Maria Sharapova when the Russian won at the French Open. Earlier this year, she recorded the best start to a tennis season in 15 years when she blitzed to a 26-match winning streak. She hasn't faced Serena at a Grand Slam since she won her first major at the Australian Open.

Even Serena knows that it will be a tough match. "Victoria's playing unbelievable. She's played so well this year," Williams said of the Belarusian. "Already having a Grand Slam under her belt is really great. She did it in such style, so it's not going to be easy if I play against her." Still, her current form in the past 12 months had enabled her to post a perfect 9-0 record against Top 5 players in the past 12 months. Expect an exciting battle between the two, so be sure to watch the Wimbledon 2012 women's semifinal live featuring Serena vs Azarenka on July 5, Thursday afternoon.