NEW YORK (AP) - The war of words has moved to center court.

Martina Hingis and Venus Williams. No. 1 vs. No. 3 at the U.S. Open semifinals.

``I think it will be very, very close,'' Anke Huber predicted. ``It's going to be a tough match for Martina, I think. Venus is hitting the ball hard and very aggressive.''

Huber lost to Hingis 6-2, 6-0 in a wind-swept quarterfinal Tuesday, while Williams joined the semifinal party by stopping No. 12 Barbara Schett 6-4, 6-3 in a night match, setting up the Hingis-Williams match on Friday.

In the bottom half of the women's draw, defending champion and second-seeded Lindsay Davenport took on No. 5 Mary Pierce today, with the winner to play the survivor of tonight's final quarterfinal pitting No. 7 Serena Williams, the younger sister of Venus, against fourth-seeded Monica Seles.

The possibility still exists that the Williams sisters will meet for the title.

In her first U.S. Open two years ago, Venus Williams reached the final, where she was hastily dispatched by Hingis.

``Last time, I honestly did not know what I was doing,'' Williams said of the 1997 meeting. ``I'm a different player now.''

Last year, Williams reached the semifinals, only to fall to Davenport.

The men completed their quarterfinal matchups Tuesday with yet another retirement. Fifth-seeded Gustavo Kuerten advanced when Magnus Norman retired with a strained back after losing the first set 7-6 (7-4).

In other matches, Cedric Pioline ousted 14th-seeded Tommy Haas 6-4, 7-5, 6-3; Slava Dosedel defeated Jiri Novak 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5; and No. 7 Todd Martin rallied for a 5-7, 0-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 6-4 victory over No. 9 Greg Rusedski.

Hingis and Venus Williams will be meeting for the 11th time. Williams is 19, three months older than her Swiss opponent. Hingis, however, has dominated, winning seven of their encounters, including their last meeting in San Diego earlier this summer.

``We both go out there knowing we're going to have to play good tennis,'' Venus Williams said of Hingis. ``We both go out there ready to play. ... ``The key for me is definitely to abandon all unforced errors. In order not to play her and myself, I have to stop making errors.''

Against the hard-hitting Schett, Williams dominated at the net and the baseline, punctuating the first set with an overhead that caromed into the stands on set point. She broke Schett's service three times in the second set, the last time closing out the match with a backhand return that Schett couldn't touch.

``I've never won a title here before, so for me I'm trying to get a title,'' Williams said of her match against Hingis. ``And for her, I guess trying to get another title. She hasn't won here for a couple of years, since '97, when, unfortunately I became her victim.''

While Williams sparkled at night, Hingis solved the blustery winds during the day. She lost the first two games before winning the next 12 against Huber, playing as if the wind was part of her game plan.

``She used the wind very well today to her advantage,'' Huber said. ``She's just a very smart player, smarter than anybody else on the tour.

``The wind wasn't always against me, but it looked like it. I just overpowered the balls a little bit, made too many mistakes. It was very difficult because I play more aggressive than her. My shots are not as safe as hers. I thought maybe in these conditions, she's going to miss a little bit more, but she just didn't make any easy mistakes or any mistakes at all.''