On a sunny day in Edgbaston, Maria Sharapova, Na Li, Sania Mirza and Magdalena Rybarikova booked their place in the AEGON Classic semi-finals.
Maria Sharapova battled her way into the last four with a hard fought victory over last year’s runner-up, Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium, 6-1 2-6 6-3.
“I thought I started off really well and the tennis was at a pretty high level,” said Sharapova, a two-time champion in Edgbaston.
“But I started slowing down in the second set and let her get back in the match. She looked pretty comfortable on the grass. With an opponent like that, you can’t let her get back in the game.”
Sharapova will now meet the No.4 seed from China, Na Li, who was the first player to book her place in the semi-final after defeating Switzerland’s Stefanie Voegele 6-3 7-6(3).
“We’ve always had pretty difficult encounters and I just played her last week at the French Open and it was three tough sets, but that was on clay, and this is a new tournament and a different surface,” added Sharapova.
The second semi-final will feature Indian superstar Sania Mirza, a former top 30 player, against Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia.
Rybarikova defeated Polish teenager Urszula Radwanska 6-3 6-3 while Mirza reached her first grass court semi-final by battling past Hungary’s Melinda Czink 6-1 7-6(4).
“I struggled a little on the clay season, so it’s great to be finally on the grass as I always play well on it,” said Mirza. “I was just trying to play my game as much as possible today and be aggressive. It’s been a great week so far and a great tune-up for Wimbledon. Hopefully I’ll have a good match tomorrow.”
Saturday’s semi-final Centre Court programme kicks off at 12 noon with Sharapova versus Li, followed by Mirza versus Rybarikova. A small number of tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling 0844 581 1331.
- Maria Sharapova talks through a hard fought quarter final victory
- Sania Mirza reflects on reaching the last four in both singles and doubles