NEW YORK – Serena Williams entered her second consecutive Grand Slam final – and second after giving birth to her daughter Alexis Olympia last September – at the US Open on Thursday night.

Playing with the roof closed as storms lit up New York's skyline, Williams won the 31st game in the Grand Slam final with a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova.

This will be the ninth final of the US Open for the 23rd Grand Slam champion. If Williams wins, she will get a seventh title in New York. She is currently tied with Chris Evert in six titles.

"Honestly, it's amazing because (last year at this time) I was fighting for my life in the hospital after having the baby," Williams said, his voice muffled. to give birth. "I am so happy to be able to stand out in this field."

Williams, who ranks 26th, returned in March after her maternity leave. In July, she went to the Wimbledon final, but offered little resistance as Angelique Kerber won a third major crown.

Williams seems stronger in New York and has lost only one inning in six games, against Kaia Kanepi (Estonia) in the fourth round.

If Williams wins Saturday's 24th Grand Slam trophy against the Madison Keys-Naomi Osaka semifinal, she would equal Margaret Court's record, won by the Australian during her career in the amateur tennis era.

Less a temporary hiccup in which she fell behind 0-2 on Thursday, Williams, 17th, dominated the field, winning 12 of the next 13 games to mark one last place.

The most significant statistic in the 76-minute game was that Williams won 24 of 28 points in the net, not his usual tactic.

Sevastova suggested that Williams should continue to visit the net.

"It's putting more pressure on the net," Sevastova said. "I do not know if I was surprised, maybe maybe not … Again, she had better statistics, better than me, more winners, fewer mistakes, so she deserves it. .

Williams: "I'm just going to shake my hand, but I wanted to try something different today and it worked in my favor."