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US Open 2013: Serena Williams breaks Li Na's resistance to reach final

• Williams cruises to a 6-0, 6-3 victory despite Li's last stand
• American faces Victoria Azarenka in repeat of last year's final

Serena Williams celebrates her victory over Li Na in the US Open semi-final. Photograph: Tim Clayton/Corbis

There comes a point in any tennis match involving Serena Williams at her rampant best when there is no point at all. Li Na struck that wall on Friday, despite a noble but doomed effort at the end, as she was led towards the exit in her first US Open semi-final.

Williams, the four-times champion, goes into Sunday's final against Victoria Azarenka for a re-run of last year's decider positively glowing after another absolute towelling of an opponent. Li, whose hitherto solid forehand and serve let her down, at least inspired raucous support for saving six match points in her concluding service game. It lasted nearly quarter of an hour, it was brave, it brought the crowd to a pitch of excitement and it was too late. When the excitement died down, Williams took the ball in her hand, went up to the service line and rounded out a 6-0, 6-3 victory.

Williams, who did just enough in a disappointing match, has lost only 16 games in 12 sets, inflicting five bagels on her opponents, daunting numbers for Azarenka to contemplate. "It was a good match," Williams said. "It got tough at the end, I got a little nervous but I was able to close it out eventually. To be out here and hear, 'Go Serena, go Serena', I really mean it, makes me feel so special."

"We always have really good matches," the world No 1 said of Azarenka, with whom she is developing an interesting and amicable rivalry. "I look forward to it. She lifts her game whenever it counts, and that's the difference."

Azarenka, the second seed, was nearly as dominant over the Italian world No83 Flavia Pennetta, winning 6-4, 6-2 in an hour and 34 minutes. The first semi-final in the Arthur Ashe Stadium hit no great heights and was riddled with errors, the struggle coming in the first set rather than the second.

On her third set point, for instance, Azarenka pushed a sloppy ground stroke wide and they remained stuck on deuce. She double-faulted on her fourth set point, again followed by a killer cross-court volley for her fifth chance to take the session, but Pennetta's power got her back to deuce.

It took a special effort to convert the sixth opportunity, a dink into open court at the end of a see-sawing exchange close to the net. The second set got away from the Italian and Azarenka finished with a flourish, sending her by now shredded opponent the wrong way as she placed a controlled volley into an empty court.