Day 4 of the Philippine Women’s Open at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila ultimately came down to consistency, as three players who have been in form all week secured their spots in the semifinals.
Third seed Solana Sierra of Argentina had to weather a spirited second-set surge from unseeded Lanlana Tararudee of Thailand before pulling through, 6-3, 6-4.
Now at a career-high world ranking of No. 63, the Argentine No. 1 mixed heavy baseline drives with timely forays to the net to keep the Thai No. 1 at bay.
Tararudee mounted a late comeback from a 5-2 deficit in the second set, but Sierra held her nerve to close out the match and reach the final four.
The 21-year-old Sierra, who shared that she has been friends with Alex Eala since they were 12, will await the winner of the quarterfinal showdown between Eala and fifth seed Camille Osorio, the final match on Thursday.
The first quarterfinal on Center Court at the Felicisimo Ampon Tennis Center—featuring giant-killer Tatiana Prozorova of Russia against 20-year-old Sofia Costoulas of Belgium—rewarded fans who braved the scorching early afternoon heat with a gripping contest.
World No. 143 Costoulas leaned on her shot variety, breaking Prozorova in the opening game and holding the advantage to take the first set.
Prozorova, ranked No. 174, responded with the powerful groundstrokes that fueled her upset of top seed Tatjana Maria in the previous round, claiming the second set in just eight games to force a decider.
Costoulas, who had already endured a four-hour match in the opening round, appeared poised to advance after moving ahead 4-2 in the final set.
Prozorova, however, found a second wind, rattling off four straight games to seal the victory in two hours and 26 minutes.
Fourth seed Donna Vekic of Croatia continued to thrive in what has become an adopted homecourt, dispatching fellow veteran Zhu Lin, 6-4, 6-3.
In a battle between two players seeking to climb back up the rankings, former world No. 17 Vekic proved steadier than former world No. 31 Zhu. The win set up an intriguing semifinal clash between the 29-year-old Vekic and Prozorova.
In doubles action, the top two seeds lived up to their billing.
Top-seeded Americans Quinn Gleason and Sabrina Santamaria posted a clinical 6-2, 6-2 victory over Li Yuyun of Chinese Taipei and Sara Saito of Japan in the first semifinal.
Meanwhile, second seeds Eudice Chong of Hong Kong and Liang Enshuo of Chinese Taipei turned back Cho Yitsen and Cho Ihsuan—also of Chinese Taipei, who were playing their second match of the day—6-3, 6-3.
