By Chris Oddo | Thursday August 11, 2016
Angelique Kerber booked the last semifinal slot in Rio, setting up a popcorn battle with Madison Keys.
Photo Source: Clive Brunskill/Getty
Without Serena Williams in the Olympic mix, No.2-seeded Angelique Kerber confidently assumed the mantle of top remaining seed on Thursday in Rio by notching an impressive 6-1, 6-2 victory over Great Britain’s Johanna Konta.
Olympic Live Blog: Social Media, Stats, and Live Updates
The German’s victory sets up a semifinal clash with the next highest remaining seed, No.7-seeded Madison Keys. Keys rumbled past Russia’s Daria Kasatkina, 6-3, 6-1 behind 30 winners.
Kerber is bidding to be the first German to medal at the Olympics since Steffi Graf in 1992, and along with Petra Kvitova she’s bidding to become the first female southpaw to ever win Gold.
Kerber kept the statline clean, hitting 7 winners against 11 unforced errors, while Konta struggled to find the court in the windy conditions. The British No.1 struck 43 unforced errors and could not mount a charge, losing to Kerber for the second time this season.
Kerber broke six times on eleven opportunities and surrendered only one break.
In the top half of the draw Petra Kvitova stayed in fine form as the Czech sailed past Elina Svitolina, 6-2, 6-0. Svitolina, who upset Serena Williams in the round of 16, had no answer for Kvitova on Thursday. She offered up just two winners against 18 for the Czech.
Kvitova will face Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig in the semifinals. Puig converted on all six of her break point opportunities and routed Germany’s Laura Siegemund, 6-1, 6-1.
Puig notched her biggest career win on Tuesday when she thumped Garbiñe Muguruza, and she is bidding to become the first Puerto Rican to ever win the Gold at the summer games.
Kerber owns the 4-1 lifetime edge over Keys, including a win in their last two meetings. Puig and Kvitova have never played before.