Semi-final battles about to begin in Stanford – Bank of the West Classic 2012
Semi-final rounds of Bank of the West Classic tournament are about to begin this weekend, with just four contenders running alive in the race to glory at the hard court event in Stanford. Former world number one and the reigning
Wimbledon champion, Serena Williams is up against the ninth seeded crafty Romanian, Sorana Cirstea, for a place in the final showdown of the tournament. While the fifth seeded Belgian tennis ace, Yanina Wickmayer, will lock horns with the surprise candidate,
Coco Vandeweghe, in the second semi-final battle on Saturday’s eve.
Coming to Stanford right after her fifth Wimbledon crown, Williams is the hot favourite for winning her fourth WTA championship title of the running season. The 30-year-old has made her emphatic comeback to the professional circuit
after a lengthy lay-off and it has been a sublime run of form for the American powerhouse up till now. Williams had an explosive start to the Stanford campaign and won both of her initial matches in straight sets to reach the semis with commanding ease. Sixth
seeded South African, Chanelle Scheepers, was her latest victim in the quarter-final draw, succumbing to the power of the top seed contender at 4-6, 0-6, to let her through.
Cirstea had a rough ride in the round of eight but managed to surpass the third seeded Slovak tennis ace, Dominika Cibulkova, in a stiff three-setter to book a date with Williams. The ninth seeded Romanian hasn’t faced the American
number one in her entire career and Saturday’s semi-final battle will be a sure test of her skills and abilities.
Vandeweghe has been the surprise package in the tournament so far. She lost her qualifier against Noppawan Lertcheewakarn but received a lucky loser entry to the main draw, since the Thai winner pulled out of the tournament due
to injury. The 20-year-old American came under the limelight when she stunned the former world number one, Jelena Jankovic, in the second round and then went on to hunt down the Pole tennis prodigy, Urszula Radwanska, 6-4, 6-4, in the quarter-final clash.
37th ranked Wickmayer registered the biggest upset of the tournament by disposing of the in-form world number 10, Marion Bartoli, 6-3, 6-2, in the round of eight. She will have to face Vandeweghe to earn a title shot
in the final of the tournament.
"When she's confident and feeling good, she can play some amazing tennis," Wickmayer said of Vandeweghe. "I haven't seen her play here this week, but looking at the scores and looking at the people she has been beating here, it
looks like she's playing really well. I need to be prepared and focused."
Serena Remains the hot favourite for lifting gold at Bank of the West Classic tournament but any upset in the semi-final draw can change the entire scenario this weekend.
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