Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic came from behind to battle her way into the Wimbledon semi-finals with a gritty 4-6, 7-6 (10/8), 8-6 victory over Estonian qualifier Kaia Kanepi on Tuesday.
Kvitova saw off several match points and recovered from 4-0 down in the third set before finally overcoming her opponent in two hours and 39 minutes on Court One.
“In the first set I don’t know what was the problem when I lost my serve,” Kvitova said. “I cannot believe it. It’s something incredible so I’m very happy.”
PHOTO: REUTERS
Kvitova now faces defending champion Serena Williams in today’s semi-finals.
The clash between world No. 62 Kvitova and world No. 80 Kanepi was the surprise quarter-final at the All England Club.
Aged 20, Kvitova was the youngest player and the only left-hander in the quarter-finals.
The Czech fell at the first round at her two previous Wimbledons, and had never won on grass before her run at the All England Club this year.
Kanepi had never previously been past the Wimbledon second round. The 25-year-old is only the sixth qualifier to reach the Wimbledon women’s quarter-finals.
Kanepi said: “During the match points I just tried to play the point, but nothing special.”
“When she broke, she got some more confident and she just kept in there, kept fighting,” the Estonian said.
Kanepi has been ranked as high as 18th in the world.
“The last half year I had very bad period,” she said. “I was injured before French Open and before Wimbledon, so I got bad losses. My confidence went down. I just didn’t find the rhythm and good form.”
Meanwhile, world No. 1 Serena Williams has joined the Li Na fan club after defeating China’s top player in their quarter-final clash.
The defending champion beat Li 7-5, 6-3 but the Chinese player equalled her best-ever performance at the All England Club by reaching the last eight.
The Wuhan-born 28-year-old has already made the semi-finals of the Australian Open.
And Williams believes the world No. 12 can still be a force at the top level thanks to her attitude to the game.
“She is mentally very tough and that is why she is doing so well,” Williams said.
“She is tricky at times and I have had a run-in with her several times. I never really think about dreading playing anyone,” she said. “But she is good at moving the ball around and she is good at making unbelievable shots and she is a good server — she serves really, really well. And she has excellent placement.”
Li was outplayed by Serena for much of the match as her game unravelled on Centre Court but insisted she had been concentrating on herself and not worrying about the 12-time Grand Slam champion on the other side of the net.
“You don’t worry about your opponent — you concentrate on yourself. It did not work out — I am a little bit sad that I am out but happy to make the quarter-finals,” she said.
In the third round of the men’s doubles Jurgen Melzer of Austria, and Philipp Petzschner, Germany, defeated Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun and Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.
Former world No. 2 Paula Badosa has withdrawn from this week’s Wuhan Open, organizers said on Tuesday, amid a racism row over an online photograph. Tournament organizers said the Spaniard had pulled out of the WTA 1000 tournament, citing a gastrointestinal illness, hours before her first-round match against Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. News outlets including Britain’s the Telegraph earlier reported that Badosa had posted a photo on Instagram in which she appeared to imitate a Chinese face by placing chopsticks on the corners of her eyes. The photo was taken last week in a restaurant in Beijing, where she reached the semi-finals of the
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
RSS