Chan Yung-jan and Chan Hao-ching survived as fellow Taiwanese fell all around them in the quarter-finals of the doubles at the Hong Kong Open yesterday.
The top-seeded Taiwanese sisters cruised into the semi-finals after a 6-1, 6-3 victory over countrywoman Chuang Chia-jung and her partner, Junri Namigata of Japan, in 1 hour, 1 minute at the Victoria Park Tennis Stadium.
The Chan sisters saved three of the four break-point chances they faced and converted five of 14 as they won 73 percent of their service points to set up a semi-final tomorrow against another pair of sisters, Czech duo Karolina and Kristyna Pliskova.
The third-seeded Czech pairing booked their semi-final spot just as easily with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Taiwan’s Chan Chin-wei and Xu Yi-fan of China, also in 1 hour, 1 minute.
The Pliskova sisters saved both break-point chances they faced and converted four of seven as Chan Chin-wei’s campaign in Hong Kong came to an end.
Also falling in the quarter-finals were another pair of Taiwanese sisters — former world No. 1 Hsieh Su-wei and Hsieh Shu-ying — who were defeated 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 10-3 by Patricia Mayr-Achleitner of Austria and Arina Rodionova of Australia in the hardest-fought quarter-final.
The Hsieh sisters saved 11 of 16 break-point chances and converted six of 11, but it was not enough as they exited the competition after a close match that lasted 1 hour, 33 minutes.
Mayr-Achleitner and Rodionova face Chinese duo Wang Yafan and Zheng Jie in today’s first semi-final.
In the singles, second seed Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia crashed out in the second round, beaten 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 by Belgium’s Alison van Uytvanck in 2 hours, 19 minutes.
The 20-year-old Van Uytvanck, the reigning OEC Taipei WTA Ladies Open champion after her victory at the Taipei Arena last year, saved 11 of 14 break-point chances and converted five of 12 to down the world No. 57 and set up a quarter-final clash with Australian qualifier Jarmila Gajdosova.
The other second-round matches all went to form, with third seed Karolina Pliskova, fifth seed Zheng and seventh seed Jana Cepelova all advancing to the quarter-finals.
World No. 36 Karolina Pliskova defeated Monica Puig 6-3, 6-4 in 1 hour, 15 minutes as the Puerto Rican’s serve let her down and she produced 10 double-faults.
The Czech player next faces Zheng, ranked 71st, who swept past fellow Chinese Zhang Kai-lin 6-1, 6-4 in 1 hour, 22 minutes.
Slovakian Cepelova easily defeated Chinese qualifier Zhu Lin 6-1, 6-3 in 1 hour, 5 minutes, saving four of five break-point chances and converting five of 11, to set up a quarter-final clash with former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy.
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