Taiwan’s Chan sisters crashed out of the semi-finals of the Internationaux de Strasbourg doubles competition yesterday.
Third seeds Chan Hao-ching and elder sister Chan Yung-jan were defeated 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 10-5 by Australian duo Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua in 1 hour, 31 minutes.
The Taiwanese pairing saved seven of nine break-point chances and converted four of seven, compared with three of seven break-point chances saved and two of nine converted by their opponents, but they still ended up exiting the competition.
Photo: EPA
The Aussies face Tatiana Bua of Argentina and Chile’s Daniela Seguel in the today’s final of the doubles competition.
In the singles competition on Thursday, former Internationaux de Strasbourg champion Andrea Petkovic of Germany lost 6-4, 6-4 to Monica Puig of Puerto Rico in the quarter-finals.
Fourth seed Petkovic, who won the tournament in 2011, missed her chances to break her opponent in the first set and Puig capitalized to reach her first WTA Tour semi-final.
The German was the only seed left in the tournament, which will see a new champion.
Julia Goerges of Germany was beaten by Madison Keys of the US 6-2, 2-6, 6-2.
Keys next meets Puig in the semi-finals.
“She has a great forehand, so I was definitely trying to stay away from that,” Keys told the WTA Web site of Goerges.
“So I was just trying to play my game, play to her backhand more and wait for the right opportunity,” she said.
Also advancing was Christina McHale of the US, who was 6-2, 3-1 up against Zarina Diyas before the Kazakh player retired with an injury.
“I don’t think the score shows how close the match was up until then,” McHale told the WTA Web site.
“It’s a shame she got injured and couldn’t keep playing because the games were pretty close. All the games were close. I was playing well and serving well, and I’m happy I was able to win most of those close games. I wasn’t expecting her to pull out. I hope she recovers quickly from this,” she said.
McHale kept laying on the praise for her opponent in her post-match interview.
“I think she’s playing really well these days. Obviously, she had two really good wins here. She takes the ball really early and hits the ball really flat, so you really need to prepare early on both sides,” she said.
McHale next faces Silvia Soler-Espinosa of Spain, who edged Camila Giorgi of Italy 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.
It is McHale’s first WTA Tour semi-final on clay.
“I’m really excited to be in the semis,” she said.
“I’ve played here a couple of times, but this is the first time I’ve made the semis, so it’s really exciting for me,” she added.
“I hope to play well again tomorrow [Friday]. I’m just thinking about tomorrow’s match first. I’m feeling ready,” McHale said..
NUREMBERG CUP
AP, NUREMBERG, Germany
Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic upset top seed Angelique Kerber of Germany 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to make the Nuremberg Cup semi-finals on Thursday.
Also on Thursday, second seed Eugenie Bouchard of Canada defeated Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (8/6).
Kerber won 16 of the first 17 points and squandered a 4-0 lead to lose the first set. Pliskova held her serve twice in the second, Kerber only once, and that decided the match.
Victory gave Pliskova, ranked 64th, her first win over a top-10 player. Kerber was ranked No. 9.
Karin Knapp of Italy outlasted seventh seed Caroline Garcia of France 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 6-4 to reach her first semi-final in 10 months.
Fourth seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine downed Mona Barthel of France 6-4, 6-4 and next plays Pliskova. Bouchard faces Knapp.
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