Taiwanese Asian Games gold medalists Chan Yung-jan and Chan Hao-ching eased through to the semi-finals of the doubles competition at the Japan Women’s Open in Osaka yesterday after a 6-1, 6-1 victory.
The top-seeded Taiwanese sisters took just 53 minutes to dispatch Japanese duo Misa Eguchi and Eri Hozumi, saving one of two break-point chances and converting six of eight.
The No. 1 seeds next face Shuko Aoyama and Renata Voracova in the semi-finals after the Japanese-Czech duo defeated Lisa Raymond of the US and Samantha Stosur of Australia 6-0, 6-4 in just over an hour in yesterday’s other quarter-final.
Photo: Lin Tsung-wei, Taipei Times
In the remaining first-round match, Spain’s Lara Arruabarrena and Tatjana Maria of Germany stunned second seeds Klaudia Jans-Ignacik of Poland and Kristina Mladenovic of France 7-6 (7/4), 1-6, 10-6 in 1 hour, 33 minutes.
In the second round of the singles, third seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine rallied to defeat Japanese wild-card Naomi Osaka 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, while Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva caused an upset by beating sixth seed Heather Watson of Britain 6-4, 7-5.
Second seed Madison Keys of the US had no such problems, cruising to a 6-0, 6-4 win over Misaki Doi of Japan to set up a quarter-final clash with Thailand’s Luksika Kumkhum, who defeated Hozumi 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.
TIANJIN OPEN
Taiwan’s Hsieh Shu-ying crashed out of the first round of the doubles at the Tianjin Open yesterday.
Hsieh and her partner, Xu Shilin of China, fell to a 6-1, 7-6 (7/5) defeat to Ukrainian twin sisters Lyudmyla Kichenok and Nadiia Kichenok in 1 hour, 14 minutes, despite saving eight of 13 break-point chances and serving four aces.
The Ukrainian twins face another Taiwanese in the quarter-finals when they take on Asian Games gold medalist Chan Chin-wei and her partner, Xu Yi-fan of China.
In the other first-round match, Romania’s Sorana Cirstea and Andreja Klepac of Slovenia defeated Cagla Buyukakcay of Turkey and Danka Kovinic of Montenegro 6-2, 6-2.
In the quarter-finals, second seeds Alla Kudryavtseva of Russia and Anastasia Rodionova of Australia beat Chinese duo Liang Chen and Zhang Shuai 6-2, 6-2.
In the second round of the singles, fourth seed Varvara Lepchenko of the US defeated Liu Fangzhou of China 7-6 (7/3), 7-5, sixth seed Alison Riske of the US downed Olga Govortsova of Belarus 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), eighth seed Ajla Tomljanovic of Croatia beat China’s Duan Ying-ying 6-4, 6-4 and Cirstea cruised to a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Andrea Hlavackova of the Czech Republic.
GENERALI LADIES
AP, LINZ, Austria
Ana Ivanovic overcame a left-thigh injury to beat Pauline Parmentier of France 6-3, 6-2, while Italy’s Camila Giorgi routed fourth seed Andrea Petkovic 6-1, 6-2 in the opening round of the Generali Ladies in Linz, Austria, on Tuesday.
Ivanovic, who won the event in 2008 and 2010 and reached the final last year, lost her opening service game, but the second-seeded Serbian went on to dominate the match until asking for medical treatment while trailing 2-1 in the second set.
World No. 8 Ivanovic, who is chasing her fifth title of the season, did not concede a game afterward to set up a second-round match against Madison Brengle. The American qualifier was leading 7-5, 3-1 when her Romanian opponent Irina-Camelia Begu retired.
World No. 42 Giorgi had four aces and saved all four break points for Petkovic to clinch her third win of the season against the German, who is ranked 16th.
Giorgi next plays Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, who beat Donna Vekic of Croatia 7-5, 6-1.
Also on Tuesday, seventh seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic defeated Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium 6-2, 6-4, while Mona Barthel of Germany eased past Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-1.
Bertens lost in qualifying, but replaced Carla Suarez Navarro in the main draw after the Spaniard pulled out with a right-elbow injury.
Bulgaria’s Tsvetana Pironkova, who won her maiden WTA Tour title in Sydney earlier this year, defeated Austrian wild-card Lisa-Marie Moser 6-2, 6-3, while Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia beat Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-4, 5-7, 6-2.
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