Keys proved to be the ultimate party pooper with her victory over Venus while at the same time indicating the mantle of American women’s tennis should be in safe hands when it is moved on from the two sisters.
Serena and Venus had been hoping to provide fans with the first all-Williams sisters clash at a grand slam since the 2009 Wimbledon final in the semi-finals.
Keys, who was inspired at four years old to take up the game after seeing Venus play at Wimbledon, refused to succumb to sentimentality and demonstrated the ball striking and power hitting, which had destroyed players of the calibre of double Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, in a 29-minute first set.
An adductor injury that forced her out of the Wimbledon third round last year, just days after she had stormed to the Eastbourne title, however, flared up again in the second set, which brought back some desperate memories.
“It was definitely a flashback to Wimbledon for me,” Keys said of the injury that forced her to take an injury break while trailing 4-1 in the second set.
“It was quite an overwhelming moment and scary ... and I had the nightmare of ‘I don’t want this to happen again’.”
Keys, now coached by former number one Lindsay Davenport, however, showed her maturity and mental toughness once she settled to overpower Venus and battle through the injury to advance to her first grand slam semi-final.
“It’s definitely an amazing moment,” she added. “I’m enjoying those moments for little bits of time and then refocusing and thinking about the next round.”
Keys’ chances of making the final have improved with the world number one battling the effects of a cold after a virus hit several players at the tournament.
“I’ve been sick the past few days,” a hoarse-sounding Serena told reporters after her 6-2, 6-2 destruction of last year’s finalist Dominika Cibulkova.
“It’s just getting worse and worse. I heard it’s a virus going around with a lot of the players.
“I think I caught it.”