Canada’s Leylah Fernandez reached her first grass-court semifinal with a 6-2, 6-1 win over England’s Harriet Dart on Thursday at the Rothesay International in Eastbourne, England.
Fernandez, seeking her first title since Hong Kong in 2023, will face defending champion Madison Keys on Friday. The fourth-seeded Keys advanced by walkover after Czech Karolina Muchova withdrew with a right wrist injury.
The other semifinal pits No. 3 seed Jasmine Paolini of Italy and No. 6 Daria Kasatkina of Russia, who both knocked out British hopefuls in the quarterfinals. Paolini eliminated Katie Boulter 6-1, 7-6 (0) and Kasatkina cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 victory over 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu.
Bad Homburg Open
Third-seeded Emma Navarro moved into the semifinals in Germany after former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark retired with a left knee injury.
Navarro was up 4-6, 6-1, 1-0 when Wozniacki could not continue. Wozniacki slipped in the first set while chasing down a drop shot. Navarro will meet Russia’s Diana Shnaider, a 6-3, 7-6 (3) winner over Spain’s Paula Badosa.
Croatia’s Donna Vekic advanced to the final foursome in a walkover when defending champion Katerina Sinakova of the Czech Republic withdrew suddenly. Vekic will face Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova, who saved five match points against Anna Blinkova of Russia during a third-set tiebreaker before prevailing in dramatic fashion 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (9).
