Serena Williams, trailing in the third set against 2009 French Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova won five games in a row en route to a 6-1 3-6 6-3 victory that put her back in the semi-finals at Paris after a decade’s absence.

“I’m very proud of her,” said Williams’ coach, Patrick Moratouglou, “because she was really, really in a bad situation.”

Williams had lost four consecutive quarter-finals at Roland Garros — in 2004, 2007, 2009 and 2010 — and so when she was serving at 2-0 in the final set yesterday, “I thought, you know, ‘Can’t go out like this again.’”

That was a pivotal game, featuring 16 points and three break chances for Kuznetsova, who fluffed the last with a drop shot that landed wide. After finally holding in that game with an inside-out forehand winner as Kuznetsova stumbled to the clay in vain pursuit, Williams then broke right away with a backhand winner that had her yelling and shaking her fist.

“Unbelievable competitor,” Kuznetsova said. “She turns on (her) game when she needs it.”

In tomorrow’s semi-finals, 2002 French Open champion Williams will face No. 5 Sara Errani, last year’s runner-up to Maria Sharapova. Errani reached the semi-finals for the third time in the last five Grand Slam tournaments by beating No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4 7-6 (6).

“She forces you to play at a very high level to have any chance of winning. I’ll have to hit shots hard and deep and make her move,” said Errani, who was 0-28 against women ranked in the top five before beating Radwanska.

“As soon as you hit a short ball, Serena gets right on top of you, and she has enough power to end the point.”

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