The seven-time Grand Slam champion said she would be deaf to the plaudits likely to rain down on her after she confounded the critics and made the last four as an unseeded player ranked 81 in the world following an injury lay-off.

"I don't read anything," she said. "One time, I think it was '99, I read this article. It was really good and I was like 'oh, yeah! I'm the bomb'.

"I just got too headstrong. I don't want to be like some of those celebrities walking around, just so full of themselves.

"I always want to be down to earth, want to be a person like when you meet them, they're the same person that you think of them in the article or something."

The 25-year-old Williams, who won the Australian Open in 2003 and 2005, said she would soak up the praise after she retires from tennis.

"When my career is over, I've been saving a lot of articles, I'll go back and read them," she said. "I don't want to be big headed (so) I can barely get through the door."

She said earlier in the week that she had also reined in her ego on the tennis court in the process of eliminating highly-rated 11th seed Jelena Jankovic.

"When I go out to play I like to go to the person's stronger side," she said.

"I guess it makes me feel macho or something that if I beat them going to their backhand or whatever, their stronger side, it makes me feel extra awesome.

"But I just wanted to get the match over with and not have to show off too much."