Unlike Roger Federer the previous day, Serena Williams proved shock-proof on Wimbledon's Center Court Thursday as she reached the women's singles final for the sixth time. Her 7-6, 6-2 win looked as predictable as Federer's defeat Wednesday was shocking, but the American slugger was given an early fright by 20-year-old Petra Kvitova before rolling through to Saturday's showpiece where she will play Vera Zvonareva. The only person inside the All England Club who seemed surprised that she was in the final again was Serena herself. “I didn't expect to get this far in the tournament the way I was playing at the start,” the world No. 1 said after reaching the final without conceding a set, as she did last year. Home hope Andy Murray's impending men's semifinal showdown with Rafael Nadal hogged the back pages and the chatter around the grounds Thursday, and there was a distinctly detached atmosphere on Center Court as Russian Zvonareva walked out to begin the day's action against the 82nd-ranked Tsvetana Pironkova. A lively affair ensued with Zvonareva ending the Bulgarian's dream run with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win to reach her first Grand Slam final at the 30th time of asking. Pironkova got the use of a swanky South Kensington apartment, courtesy of the Bulgarian Embassy, after only booking a hotel room for a short stay. The endearing 22-year-old could well hire it again next year after returning to Plovdiv 250,000 pounds richer and with her reputation enhanced after Tuesday's startling defeat of five-time champion Venus Williams. That win would have remained the most surprising result of an unpredictable fortnight had it not been for grasscourt king Federer's quarterfinal pounding by the mighty forehand of Czech Tomas Berdych Wednesday. For 45 minutes against a hesitant Zvonareva on a blustery Center Court the skilful Pironkova was on collision course with Serena as she won her 11th consecutive set here but from 2-2 in the second her game evaporated. Zvonareva, who had tasted a Grand Slam semifinal defeat at the Australian Open last year, grew in confidence and her greater experience paid off as she swept to victory. “Not even close. One set is like an eternity,” Pironkova told reporters after going tantalizingly close to becoming the first unseeded woman to reach a Wimbledon final. Zvonareva, 25, becomes only the third Russian woman to reach the final of the grasscourt slam and the first since Maria Sharapova pulled the rug from beneath the feet of Serena in 2004. What chance a repeat? “I always believe in myself, I don't care about what everyone says,” Zvonareva, who studies international economic relations in Moscow, told reporters. She has already got the better of Serena (and Venus) once this week alongside doubles partner Elena Vesnina but facing the fury of the best serve in women's tennis in her first Grand Slam singles final will be an altogether more demanding challenge. Serena was not at her best against Kvitova Thursday and when she trailed 4-2 in the opening set after dropping serve in the fifth game of a match full of heavy baseline artillery a buzz spread around Center Court. The American turned up the power - and the noise levels - to get back on level terms and despite squandering two sets points at 6-3 in the tiebreak she never relinquished control despite the plucky efforts of her Czech opponent. A moderate seven aces flew off the Serena racket, extending her record tally to 80 for the tournament. Venus and Serena Williams have been fined $4,000 each at Wimbledon for skipping a news conference after their loss in the doubles quarterfinals to Russians Vera Zvonareva and Elena Vesnina in three sets on Wednesday. India's Leander Paes and his Zimbabwean mixed doubles partner Cara Black, meanwhile, made it into the Wimbledon semifinals Thursday beating Australia's Paul Hanley and Chan Yung-Jan of Taiwan, the 12th seeds, 6-4, 6-7 (7-4) 6
