Kerber And Bartoli Set Up Battle Of Seeds In Osaka Semifinals

By Robert Martin

(October 15, 2011) True to seeding form, the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds moved through to the semifinals in straight sets at the HP Open in Osaka. Angelique Kerber was challenged by Tamarine Tanasurgarn, but came up big at the right times to advance 6-3, 6-4. Marion Bartoli of France had an easier time with Ayumi Morita as she progressed in one hour 24 minutes with a 6-2, 6-1 victory.

Kerber had to finish a match started on Friday when rain washed out play for much of the day. Beginning the match trailing 0-1, Kerber approached the match as if it were new, converting both of her break opportunities in the first set while saving seven of eight against her own serve.

The second set saw the players each have trouble holding serve as Kerber was broken twice in seven attempts by the defending champion Tanasurgarn. The German held her ground on the return, winning 51 percent of return points in the second to break three times and earn the straight-set victory.

Despite the 84 minute match, Bartoli was never threatened, hitting five aces and not facing a single break point from the No. 6 seed Morita. Bartoli was dominate on the return as well, winning 52 percent of points on the return en route to five breaks in eight chances.

Bartoli holds a 2-1 edge over Kerber, but the two have not played in over three years. Kerber’s lone win came in 2003 in the first round of qualifying in Berlin. Kerber was 15 years of age at the time and received a wild card into her first ever tour-level qualifying event.

Tournament officials will hope to complete both the semifinal and final rounds on Sunday after play was washed out on Friday and rain against on Saturday did not allow the matches to catch up.