And with that, our LIVE coverage of this match is done. Our full match recap will be posted on VAVEL USA soon. VAVEL USA will continue to LIVE cover the women's final, along with the remaining men's singles matches. Thank you for following this match with us here tonight. Please keep following us at VAVEL USA for all your tennis news. This is Pete Borkowski, signing off.
Remember, Williams is undefeated in Australian Open finals.
Williams now awaits the winner of the other semifinal between Angelique Kerber and Johanna Konta.
Williams made that match look easy. Put simply, she overpowered Radwanska. The soon-to-be world number three had no answer to Williams' big hitting. The Pole played better in the second, but Williams focused and closed out the match.
Williams finished the match with eight aces, 42 winners to only 17 unforced errors. Compare that to Radwanska, who had no aces, 4 winners and 7 unforced errors.
About her potential opponent in the final, either Johanna Konta or Angelique Kerber, Williams said "For me, either one is ok. I've never played Konta, I've played Kerber a few times. I'm a bit surprised you know I took some time off and now I'm back in the final."
After the match, Williams said of Radwanska "She started playgin really well int he second set. She was making a lot of great shots, hitting really deep. And you know I was thinking I have to do something so I went back to doing what I did all week and it worked out"
"Physically I'm feeling a lot better. Mentally I needed that break after the Open. You know, I didn't think I would do so well so fast." -Williams on her health
"I'm really excited to be in another final, so it kind of blows my mind. I don't really feel it, I can't believe I'm in the final." -Serena Williams
Serena Williams returns to the Australian Open for the 7th time. It will be her 26th major final overall. She is now one win away from tying Steffi Graf with 22 major titles, the Open Era record
Game, Set, and Match, Williams. 6-0, 6-4
Another swinging volley winner from Williams
40-0: ACE
30-0: ACE, hawkeye confirms
15-0: ACE
Williams is serving for the match
Game, Williams. Radwanska drives a routine forehand long. 5-4.
Ad-Williams: Swinging volley winner. Break point
Deuce: Huge cross court return catches the line
40-30: Deep return draws an error
40-15: Williams drives the backhand into the net
30-15: Return is well wide
15-15: Return winner
15-0: Radwanska finally does some dictating and draws an unfroced error from Williams
Radwanska is serving.
Game, Williams. Forehand mis-hit dies for a winner. 4-4.
40-15: ACE
30-15: Williams drives the backhand wide
30-0: ACE, hawkeye confirms
15-0: Smash winner from Williams
Williams is serving
Something is not right with Williams. She seems to be sweating more than usual and appears to be struggling with her breathing.
Game, Radwanska. Another return is long. Radwanska leads 4-3
Ad-Radwanska: Return is wide
Deuce: Double fault
Ad-Radwanska: Williams drives the volley straight at Radwanska, who finally lobs Williams, but Williams gets back. Eventually, Radwanska gets to the net and finishes with a volley
Deuce: This time, the backhand up the line by Williams is a winner
Ad-Radwanska: Williams backhand is well wide
Deuce: Williams backhand into the net. The first break point saved by Radwanska all match
30-40: Radwanska's awkward chip is swatted away at the net by Williams. Break point.
30-30: Return is long
15-30: Huge return from Williams
15-15: Radwanska at her crafty best draws a weak shot from Williams which she puts away with ease
0-15: Crazy tight angled backhand from Williams somehow dies for a winner
Radwanska is serving
Game, Radwanska. Williams botches a forehand and we're back on serve. 3-3.
30-40: ACE. 122 MPH is fastest of the match. Still break point
15-40: Better depth on Radwanska's groundstrokes draw an error. Double break point.
15-30: Williams puts away easy volley
0-30: Backhand into the net from Williams
0-15: Williams' forehand misses the doubles alley
Williams is serving
Game, Radwanska. Four errors from Williams give the Pole a game. 3-2.
40-15: Smash winner from Williams
40-0: This time, it's the backhand from Williams that hits the net
30-0: Forehand unforced error from Williams
15-0: Williams hits her return into the net
Radwanska is serving.
Game, Williams. Return is wide. 3-1.
40-15: Radwanska misses a backhand
30-15: Double fault
30-0: Passing shot attempt from Radwanska hits the net
15-0: ACE
Williams is serving
Game, Williams. Quick volley gives Williams the break. 2-1.
15-40: Backhand into the net from Radwanska. Double break point
15-30: Williams misses the forehand
0-30: Backhand from Radwanska is out
0-15: Double fault
Radwanska is serving
Game, Williams. Huge second serve draws soft reply which is easily crushed by Williams. 1-0.
40-30: ACE
30-30: Radwanska goes for a big return, but can't keep it in the court
15-30: Finally, Williams misses a swinging volley
15-15: Forehand winner down the line from Williams
0-15: Williams drives the forehand wide
Williams is serving
Much better serving from Radwanska in that game. She needs more first serves in this set
Game, Radwanska. The world number four is on the board when Williams nets a return. 1-0.
40-30: Finally a forehand winner from Radwanska
30-30: Generous net cord leads to smash winner from Williams
30-15: Williams drives return wide
15-15: Backhand down the line from Radwanska hits the net
15-0: Williams misses the return
Radwanska is serving.
That was some scary tennis from Williams
Radwanska only won 7 points in the entire set, including only 4 on her own serve
Williams hit 18 winners in that set.
The set only took 21 minutes.
Game and First Set, Williams. Forehand winner closes out the bagel to start the match.
40-0: Unreturnable serve. Triple set point
30-0: Volley winner from Williams
15-0: Backhand down the line winner from Williams
Williams is serving for the set.
Game, Williams. Another backhand into the net from Radwanska. 5-0
15-40: Deep return from Williams draws easy put-away
15-30; Return winner from Williams
15-15: Backhand winner down the line from Williams
15-0: Radwanska draws the error
Radwanska is serving
Game, Williams. Radwanska hits a rountine backhand into the net. 4-0.
40-30: Smart forehand winner down the line from Williams
30-30: Williams drives a forehand wide
30-15: Cross court forehand winner for Radwanska
30-0: That swinging volley from Williams is on fire today
15-0: Serve and volley perfectly
Williams is serving
Game, Williams. Double fault gives the top seed an early double break lead. 3-0.
30-40: Williams blows the backhand cross court winner
30-30: Williams slices the backhand into the net
15-30: Williams goes for the return winner, but drives it long
0-30: Passing shot from Radwanska hits the net
0-15: Another return winner for Williams
Radwanska is serving
Game, Williams. A swinging forehand volley winner gives the reigning champion a 2-0 lead.
40-15: Backhand mis-hit from Radwanska
30-15: Huge forehand winner from Williams
15-15: Return is wide
0-15: Good defence from Radwanska draws a backhand into the net
Williams is serving
Game, Williams. Another clean return winner and Williams break for the early lead.
15-40: This time, the smash is executed perfectly by Williams. Double break point.
15-30: Williams punishes Radwanska for a second serve with a return winner down the line
15-15: Swinging volley winner down the line from Williams
15-0: Williams hits a smash into the net
Ready, Play
Radwanska will serve first.
Radwanska and Williams have not played in just over two years. This probably benefits Radwanska as her style is tougher to adjust to, and she has not had her confidence destroyed by Williams lately.
The still conditions inside Rod Laver Arena will probably benefit Williams, as it means the elements will play less of a role and the ball will be more predictable.
The players have arrived on court
The rain means that the roof on Rod Laver Arena will be closed, therefore making this an indoor match.
Check out VAVEL's full preview of this match
Can Radwanska Stand Up to Williams: This is a nightmare match-up for Radwanska. She makes a career out of forcing errors and unless Williams is playing poorly, that is not going to happen. Williams has that frustrating balance of power, consistency, and good movement that Radwanska can’t handle. Williams will be able to keep Radwanska on defence and will not let the Pole turn the rallies against her. Even if Radwanska does make some tricky returns, Williams can still rip the ball from the awkward positions Radwanska will put her in. Radwanska will either have to really step up and be more aggressive than ever, or she is going to have to be so consistent that she frustrates Williams and forces her into errors. Neither seem like great options for the Pole.
Radwanska is coming off an up-and-down year that saw her perform poorly at majors and fall out of the top ten, only for her to do a 180 after the US Open and return to her contender status. In fact, the last two months of 2015 were arguably the best two months of her career. She won the biggest title of her career at the WTA Finals and finished the year at number four in the world, despite having been out of the top ten during the summer.
Williams is coming off one of the most dominant years in tennis history. She won the first three majors of the year, completing her second Serena Slam, and spent the entire year at number one. The only disappointment was that she fell two wins short of the calendar year grand slam, losing in the US Open semifinals to Roberta Vinci. Despite that disappointment, Williams still went 53-3, winning five titles.
In Williams’ absence since the US Open, Radwanska has been the top player on the tour. She leads the WTA in match wins and titles since the US Open, having won 27 matches and 4 titles. All of that was accomplished with Williams on the sidelines with injuries.
Just by reaching the semifinals, Radwanska is guaranteed to be ranked number three in the world when the new rankings are released on Monday. Should she upset Williams, the Pole would return to her career-high ranking of number two.
Radwanska is through to her second Australian Open semifinal and her fifth overall at majors. She is 1-3 in major semifinals, the lone win coming at Wimbledon in 2012. She last reached the semifinals in Melbourne in 2014, when she lost to eventual runner-up Dominika Cibulkova.
Williams is contesting her 30th grand slam semifinal. She has a 25-4 record in major semifinals. This is Williams’ seventh Australian Open semifinal. The six-time Australian Open champion has never lost in Melbourne after reaching the quarterfinals. She is 6-0 in both semifinals and finals down under. Her six Australian Open titles are an open era record and she would tie Margaret Court for the all-time record were she to win the title this year.
The pair have not played since the WTA Finals in 2013, when Williams was victorious. They have played twice before at majors, both times at Wimbledon. The latter was the 2012 final, won by Williams 6-1, 5-7, 6-1. The second set of the final remains the only set Radwanska has ever won against the American.
Williams dominates this rivalry. She is a perfect 8-0 against Radwanska, although the Pole has beaten Williams in a couple of exhibition matches, including the 2015 Hopman Cup final. Not only has Williams never lost a tour-level match to Radwanska, she’s only ever lost one set. She is 16-1 in that department. In five of their eight matches, Radwanska won four games or less in the match.
Radwanska has also been in good form so far in Melbourne. With the exception of the fourth round, where she survived a scare against young gun Ana-Lena Friedsam, Radwanska has cruised, winning four of her five matches in straight sets. They have not been over easy opponents either. She started by beating Christina McHale, and followed that by three-time major semifinalist Genie Bouchard. She cruised past Monica Puig before fighting off Friedsam. In the quarters, she was at her counterpunching best against tenth seed Carla Suarez Navarro, whom she dispatched with the loss of only four games.
There were some question marks for Serena Williams coming into the Australian Open in regards to her health and form, but she’s answered those questions brilliantly so far, cruising to the semifinals. She showed a bit of rust in her difficult opener against Camilla Giorgi, but has been untouched since. She would not lose more than three games in each of her next three matches against Su-Wei Hsieh, Daria Kasatkina, and Margarita Gasparyan, before only surrendering five in the quarterfinals against Maria Sharapova. Williams appears to be at her dominant best entering the semifinals.
Radwanska is undefeated so far in 2016 and has won her last three tournaments in a row dating back to late 2015, including the WTA Tour finals. She started the season with a title in Shenzen. She is 27-4 since the US Open and 10-0 in 2016.
Williams is contesting her first event since the US Open last September, having missed the last two months of the 2015 season with an injury.
The match will be second in the day session on Rod Laver Arena. It will follow the first men’s doubles semifinal and will NOT be before 9:30 pm EST.
Hello and welcome to VAVEL USA’s Live coverage of the Australian Open. Today, we will be providing point-by-point updates and analysis of the semifinal match-up between world number one and reigning champion Serena Williams of the United States, and world number four Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, as well as insight and preview information from now until game time. My name is Pete Borkowski and I will be your guide for this match today.