London: Angelique Kerber’s Wimbledon preparation gained momentum as she thumped Simona Halep 6-4, 6-3 in a battle of former World No. 1s to reach the semifinals of the Eastbourne tennis tournament, Thursday.
The defending Wimbledon champion converted five out of seven breakpoints to secure the win and set up a last four clash with Ons Jabeur.
Unseeded Tunisian Jabeur was made to work hard for a victory over Alize Cornet as she shook off an ankle injury in the final set to prevail 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.
“At this tournament, I’m the queen of losing the first set and then coming back,” Jabeur, who has rallied back from a set down to win three of her four matches in the event, said. “It’s another motivation for me to win, to play better in the second set, but I’m really happy with this win. It wasn’t easy at the end, I was scared for my ankle, but hopefully everything will be good,” she added.
World No.10 Aryna Sabalenka faces Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands in another quarterfinal while former World No.1 Karolina Pliskova meets Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Reuters