TheSportsCampus

Day seven at the Moorilla Hobart International saw German qualifier Mona Barthel maintain her impressive form, upsetting defending champion and No.5 seed Jarmila Gajdosova of Australia in three sets, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the semi-finals. Barthel has won the last six matches in a row and will meet No.4 seed and fellow German, Angelique Kerber, in the first semi-final tomorrow morning.

Kerber was slightly lucky to win her match against Romania's Sorana Cirstea after the last set see-sawed for a while before eventually going the German's way for a lopsided 6-0, 3-6, 7-5 win.

World no.29 and top seed Yanina Wickmayer convincingly defeated another Romanian Simona Halep 6-4, 6-0 in the third quarterfinal of the day.

Wickmayer will play the No.6 seed Shahar Peer of Israel in the second semi final tomorrow night. Peer advanced to the last four after her opponent Anna Chakvetadze of Russia was forced to retire due to cramps in the third set.

In doubles semi finals action tomorrow [4] Irina-Camelia Begu (ROU) and Monica Niculescu (ROU) go up against [2] Gajdosova and Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) while unseeded pair Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) and Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) will play [3] Chia-Jung Chuang (TPE) and Marina Erakovic (NZL) for a place in the final on Saturday.

Singles - Quarterfinals
(1) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Simona Halep (ROU) 64 60
(4) Angelique Kerber (GER) d. Sorana Cirstea (ROU) 60 36 75
(Q) Mona Barthel (GER) d. (5) Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) 26 63 62
(6) Shahar Peer (ISR) d. Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) 46 64 10 ret.