MELBOURNE — Angelique Kerber feels vindicated that she now belongs at the upper echelons of the women's game after four years of consistency helped her into her first grand slam final at the Australian Open on Thursday.
The 28-year-old beat Britain's Johanna Konta 7-5 6-2 to become the first German woman since Anke Huber in 1996 to reach the Melbourne Park final, setting up a title clash against world number one Serena Williams on Saturday.
The left-hander made her first grand slam semi-final at the U.S. Open in 2011 and then broke into the top-10 following a last-four spot at Wimbledon the next year, ending 2012 ranked a career high fifth.