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By Alberto Amalfi | Thursday, January 8, 2015

 
Ana Ivanovic

Ana Ivanovic suffered a strained abdominal in her three-set Brisbane win, but suggests she will play the semifinals.

Photo Credit: Christopher Levy (@tennis_shots)

Ana Ivanovic couldn't hold serve at the start, but maintained her composure at the finish to reach the Brisbane International semifinals.

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Ivanovic dropped the first five games before rallying for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Kaia Kanepi, withstanding both the hard-hitting Estonian and a strained abdominal. Ivanovic withdrew from her scheduled evening doubles quarterfinal with Angelique Kerber due to the injury, but suggested she will recover in time for the semifinals.

The second-seeded Serbian is set to face American Varvara Lepchenko on Friday for a spot in the final.

“I will be fine. It’s not too long before I have to be on court again,’’ Ivanovic said.

Ivanovic is one win removed from a possible marquee final of former world No. 1 players against Maria Sharapova. That would be a rematch of the 2008 Australian Open final, which Sharapova won 7-5, 6-3. The pair split four meetings in 2014.

Off target at the outset, Ivanovic lost her first three service games, fell into the deep deficit and called on coach Dejan Petrovic for advice during the changeover. The second set featured seven service breaks.

Ivanovic imposed her serve in the decider, serving 76 percent and winning 17 of her 19 first-serve points without facing a break point.

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova slammed Carla Suarez Navarro, 6-1, 6-3. Sharapova takes on Elina Svitolina in the semifinals. The 28th-ranked Ukrainian defeated third-seeded Angelique Kerber, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.

"She's a young girl that's already in the Top 30 with a tremendous amount of potential, and someone you'll be seeing in the top very soon," Sharapova said of Svitolina. "She definitely has a good game. She's an all-around player. It'll be a tough match-up for me, but one that I'm looking forward to, actually."

In their lone prior meeting, Sharapova swept Svitolina, permitting just four games in Beijing last fall. The 20-year-old baseliner is eager for a rematch.

"I'm looking forward to it," Svitolina said. "It's always great to compete against these players. You see what you need to improve. I'll try and fight as I did today, and hopefully I can win tomorrow."

 

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