Sharapova to Face Li Na in Semis of China Open
Li Na defeated Agnieszka Radwanska in her quarterfinals match at the 2012 China Open. Li had won the pair’s last two meetings very routinely during the summer season—6-2, 6-1 and 6-1, 6-1—and this time, the seventh seed was in control again, tucking away a 57-minute first set and pulling away completely from 1-2 in the second set, reeling off five games in a row to Radwanska, 6-4, 6-2.
Next for Li is second-seeded Maria Sharapova, who won by retirement, 6-0, 3-0, when fifth-seeded Angelique Kerber had to stop due to a foot injury. Sharapova leads Li in their head-to-head series, 7-4, but in their last match, Sharapova had to come back from the brink of defeat to win.
"We have always had really difficult matches," Sharapova said of Li. "And before I won the last two, she got me a couple of times. We have been back and forth with our results. But she’s a Grand Slam champion and has been Top 10 for a long time. There’s no reason why it shouldn’t be a good match tomorrow."
The other semifinal match will pit top-seeded Victoria Azarenka against Marion Bartoli, as Azarenka defeated Romina Oprandi 6-2, 6-0, losing just four points. Meanwhile, Bartoli rallied from 3-0 down in the third to beat Carla Suárez Navarro, 6-0, 2-6, 6-4. Azarenka leads Bartoli in their head-to-head series, 8-3, but Bartoli has won three of their last five meetings, and in their last meeting it was the Frenchwoman who prevailed in Miami, ending Azarenka’s perfect 26-0 start to the season.
