BANGALORE, India -- Third-seeded Serena Williams defeated older sister Venus Williams 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4) on Saturday to reach the final of the Bangalore Open.
"It was a close match, although we both weren't at our best," said Serena Williams, who will play fourth-seeded Patty Schnyder in the final Sunday.
Schnyder defeated Yan Zi 6-3, 6-4 in the other semifinal.
In the deciding set, Serena Williams broke her sister in the seventh game and had match point in the 10th but wasted it and went on to drop the service point.
"My serve let me down on match point," she said.
In the 12th game, it was Venus Williams' turn to squander a match point, allowing her sister to draw even and take the contest in the tiebreaker.
Serena Williams forced three service breaks in winning the first set before her second-seeded sister struck back to take the second set.
In the other semifinal, Schnyder dominated from the start, forcing three service breaks while conceding one point on her own serve in the first set.
"I struggled with my first serve, but my second serve was fine," Schnyder said. "I kept hitting the ball deep, which she found difficult to return."
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