By Adrianna Outlaw | Thursday, April 21, 2016
German qualifier Laura Siegemund stunned fourth-seeded Simona Halep, 6-1, 6-2, cruising into her second straight quarterfinal in Stuttgart.
Photo credit: Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Petra Kvitova showed resolve denying three match points, while Simona Halep met her match at the hands of a local today.
Laura Siegemund showed Halep little hometown hospitality in Stuttgart. The 71st-ranked German qualifier stunned the fourth-seeded Halep, 6-1, 6-2, storming into the Stuttgart quarterfinals for the first time.
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Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska rallied for a 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 triumph over Germany's Andrea Petkovic. Radwanska will take on either former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic or Karolina Pliskova for a place in the final four.
Siegemund scored the biggest win of her career before her home crowd. Siegemund surged into her second straight quarterfinal following her run to the final eight in Charleston earlier this month.
"I just played point by point," Siegemund told the media in Stuttgart. "Sure, it's definitely the biggest win of my career, but now after the match, I can only say, I have made few mistakes.
"I started very aggressively. That was the plan — attack her serve, tear open the (point) early. I know I've always done that well and it worked very well this time too."
Winless in her prior Stuttgart qualifying attempts, the 28-year-old German converted five of six break points against a hobbled Halep, who suffered a left ankle injury in Fed Cup play last weekend during Romania's loss to Germany.
Siegemund will play Roberta Vinci for a semifinal spot. The sixth-seeded Italian defeated Germany's Julia Goerges, 6-3, 6-4.
The fifth-seeded Kvitova fought off three match points edging tricky Monica Niculescu, 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2.
"I think I needed to spend more time on the court. I was really trying to play too perfectly and in the first set it wasn't really paying off," Kvitova said afterward. "It was really quick the first set and I was just trying to calm down a little bit and play more consistently through the match.
"In the end it was paying off but it was really a hard fight in the second. And I don't really remember when I last won a match from match points down. It's maybe the first."
The two-time Wimbledon champion will face 2015 Wimbledon finalist Garbine Muguruza in tomorrow's quarterfinals.
If it's anything like their last meeting, it could be electric. Muguruza topped Kvitova, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5, at the WTA Finals last fall in their only prior meeting.