Sakkari books semi-final against Collins in Charleston

Greek Maria Sakkari, the No 3 seed, won against Russian Veronika Kudermetova, the No 9 seed, 6-2, 6-4 to move into the last four of the Charleston Open at the Family Circle Tennis Center on Friday night.

Sakkari now faces one of the toughest tasks in tennis this year – a semi-final against Danielle Collins.

After the match, she had this to say about her upcoming clash with the in-form American:

“We know she’s playing extremely well right now. She just won Miami. She’s winning here pretty comfortably. It’s gonna be tough. It’s gonna be challenging playing someone who’s in top form. But I trust myself a lot. I trust my game. I’m having fun. I’m really enjoying my time on and off the court. I think that’s the most important thing. Just keep that smile on my face and play good tennis.”

The Greek beat Bulgarian Viktoriya Tomova (6-3, 6-3) and Australian lucky loser Astra Sharma (6-4, 6-1) ahead of her victory.

Earlier in the tournament, Kudermetova, ranked No 19, defeated American wildcard Shelby Rogers (7-6 (5), 6-4) and Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia, the No 5 seed (7-5, 6-1).

Charleston WTA 500, other quarter-finals results (Family Circle Tennis Center, clay, USD 922.573, most recent results first):

• Danielle Collins beat Elise Mertens (11): 6-3, 6-4
• Jessica Pegula (1) beat Victoria Azarenka (12): 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7)
• Daria Kasatkina (4) beat Jaqueline Cristian: 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-3