The Associated Press

Serena Williams clenches her fist in triumph after winning a point against Justine Henin-Hardenne in their semifinal Thursday. (Associated Press photo) | ZOOM |

WIMBLEDON, England - Venus Williams winced with each serve and doubled over to clutch her side after stretching for shots.

She was in so much pain, she barely could lift her racket bag after the match.

Simply refusing to succumb to a strained muscle or Kim Clijsters' persistent strokes, Williams erased a big deficit and won 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 Thursday to set up a second straight Wimbledon final against her sister Serena, the defending champion.

In the first semifinal, Serena turned a rematch against French Open champion Justine Henin-Hardenne into a mismatch, winning 6-3, 6-2. Henin-Hardenne snapped Serena's 33-match Grand Slam winning streak a month ago in the semifinals at Paris.

Venus' fourth-round loss at Roland Garros marked her earliest exit from a major in two years, and the abdominal strain that hampered her there flared up during the third game against Clijsters.

The 2000-01 Wimbledon champion took a medical timeout and was seen a second time by the trainer. Then came a one-hour rain delay after the first set.

"The rain saved me," Venus said. "I couldn't calm myself down. I was just so worried about the injury. Serena came in and talked to me. I went out and talked to my mom and my other sisters."

She also got more help from the trainer, including a tight wrap on her midsection. Gasping for air and leaning on her racket like a cane between points, Venus twice fell behind by a break in the second set. But she broke back both times, kept whipping winners, and somehow won 10 of the last 11 games to cap a dramatic victory.

"I'm really glad that the third set didn't go any further," fourth-seeded Venus said.

When the Williams sisters play Saturday, they will be facing each other in a major final for the sixth time. The family will gain its fourth Wimbledon trophy in a row.

Venus won the 2001 U.S. Open final, the first between siblings at a major since 1884. But Serena won their next four Sister Slam finals, from last year's French Open through this year's Australian Open.

"I'm excited to be in the final again of a Grand Slam," said Serena, who will keep her No. 1 ranking. "I was able to realize at the French that you can't always make it to the final. So now that I'm back, it's definitely exciting."

Venus' match with Clijsters had the day's highest drama, with two top players trading sizzling strokes as the light faded.

In the third game, Venus aggravated the abdominal strain while serving and started bending over or rubbing her stomach after points. She cringed after hitting an overhead in a game she lost to fall behind 5-4.

"As a rule, I never play with pain. I generally retire immediately. I've never been taught to play with pain," Venus said. "I just felt this time - I just wanted to win, basically."

After the rain, the players traded four straight breaks to 3-3 in the second set. Suddenly, Venus began to make a dent, holding for 4-3 and breaking to 5-3 by running to the doubles alley for a great backhand retrieval that surprised Clijsters, who missed a forehand.

Venus gained her first lead of the match by breaking after trailing 40-15 in the final set's third game. On one particularly spectacular point, she stumbled but put her hand on the grass to stay upright, then raced for a backhand that Clijsters sent wide.

"Obviously, on adrenaline, you can do a lot of things. She hardly missed anything at the end," Clijsters said. "Against almost every other player, except probably Serena, a lot of my shots would have been winners."

Venus broke to 4-1 with a volley winner, held for 5-1 with an ace, and broke again to end it when Clijsters' forehand sailed wide.

So, will little sis take it easy on her Saturday?

"This is the Wimbledon final," Venus said. "If I'm lame and injured, that's not her problem."