New York • Venus Williams arrived at this U.S. Open with a bum knee. She hadn't played a match in more than two months. She hadn't reached the semifinals at any Grand Slam tournament in more than a year.

And now? Williams is two victories away from her first U.S. Open title since 2001.

The No. 3-seeded Williams overcame nine double-faults and a total of 33 unforced errors to beat reigning French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 7-6 (5), 6-4 in the quarterfinals Tuesday night.

"I want to be in the final, because then obviously it's just one more step," the 30-year-old Williams said. "But I'm just focused on the semis, and I don't get too excited unless the tournament is over."

Next up for Williams is a semifinal against defending champion Kim Clijsters, who ran her U.S. Open winning streak to 19 matches by eliminating French Open runner-up Sam Stosur 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Clijsters and Williams have split their 12 previous meetings, but the Belgian won the most recent four.

Williams is the only American singles player left in the 2010 tournament, because the last of the country's 15 men in the field, 20th-seeded Sam Querrey, lost 7-6 (9), 6-7 (5), 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 to No. 25 Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland earlier Tuesday.

"I definitely wanted to … keep the hope going," said Querrey, who was broken in the match's last game. "You know, I was close."

It's the second consecutive year that zero U.S. men reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals, something that hadn't ever happened before 2009. And this is the first season that the United States didn't place a man in at least two Grand Slam quarterfinals since the French Open first admitted foreigners in 1925.

Wawrinka takes on No. 12 Mikhail Youzhny of Russia for a semifinal berth. Youzhny eliminated unseeded Tommy Robredo of Spain 7-5, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4. —

Highlights

R Venus Williams beats French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 7-6 (5), 6-4 to reach the semifinals.

• Sam Querrey, the last American in the men's singles draw, loses to Stanislas Wawrinka in five sets. —

Today's TV

P Quarterfinals, 9 a.m.; 5 p.m. ESPN2