Tennis: Wozniacki, Konjuh into Istanbul semi-finals
Caroline Wozniacki beat Karolina Pliskova, 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 to reach Istanbul WTA semi-finals.
ISTANBUL (AFP) - Top seed Caroline Wozniacki and 16-year-old Croatian qualifier Ana Konjuh reached the Istanbul WTA semi-finals on Friday.
Konjuh defeated Elina Svitolina 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 to become the youngest player to reach a WTA semifinal since a 16-year-old Donna Vekic made the Tashkent final in 2012.
Awaiting Konjuh in the semi-finals is second seed Roberta Vinci, who enjoyed a 6-0, 6-2 win over sixth seed Kurumi Nara in just 49 minutes.
Wozniacki rallied past eighth seed Karolina Pliskova, 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 while France's Kristina Mladenovic won a two-hour, 23-minute marathon against former French Open winner Francesca Schiavone, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.
"I'm happy with the way I've been serving this week and it definitely helped me out there today," Wozniacki said.
"Karolina is a tough opponent and she always gives me a lot of trouble. I knew it was not going to be easy."
