Venus held off the determined challenge of fifth seed Elena Dementieva to advance to her seventh final at the All England Club, powering through the opening set and being pushed all the way in the second before sealing a 6-1 7-6 (7/3) victory.

"I think that we share even more things together off the court," Venus said when asked about any changes in their relationship down the years. "We definitely rely on each other's advice even more."

The four-time champion then watched Serena defeat China's Zheng Jie 6-2 7-6 (7/5) in the day's second semi-final on Centre Court to make tomorrow's final a family affair.

Venus added: "I was a big sister. I was telling her, 'Never make mistakes'. So I think sometimes it put pressure on her to be perfect, too.

"Not that I'm perfect, but I'm just really like a nerd! She wasn't exactly that way, so I think we both now know our roles in the relationship and we support each other.

"She's definitely matured in a lot of ways. I don't really worry about her that much. I respect the decisions that she's going to make.

"On the court, she's always Serena Williams. She's tenacious. She's got every shot no matter what. You can't bet against her."