Venus Williams becomes oldest Wimbledon semi-finalist

Venus Williams added another chapter of achievement to her professional history as she became the oldest Wimbledon semi-finalist for 23 years after fending off French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko on Tuesday.

In the 100th singles match of her Wimbledon career, Williams defeated Ostapenko 6-3, 7-5 in one hour and 13 minutes, to become the oldest semi-finalist here since Martina Navratilova.

"I love this game," said the five-time champion when asked to explain her longevity not just as a player but a winner.

"There's no other explanation. That's why I put in the effort and the time. I try really hard. You do your best while you can. That's what I'm doing. It's a beautiful game, and it's been really good to me," she added.

Ostapenko, the Latvian No.13 seed, saw her 11-match winning streak at Grand Slams brought to a conclusive halt by the American.

Williams will now face Johanna Konta who defeated Simona Halep to become the first British woman to reach the Wimbledon singles semi-finals in 39 years.

Konta came from behind to claim a hard-earned 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 victory over Halep.

Meanwhile, Garbine Muguruza powered past Svetlana Kuznetsova to make it back to the last four.

Muguruza beat Russian seventh seed Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-4 in the last-eight contest.

The Russian will lock horns with Magdalena Rybarikova in the last four.

-ANI