Lucky-loser entry Lesia Tsurenko advances in Connecticut Open
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP)—Lucky-loser entry Lesia Tsurenko of the Ukraine beat fifth-seeded Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic 6–2, 6–2 on Thursday in the Connecticut Open quarterfinals.
Tsurenko lost in qualifying, but got into the field when top-seeded Simona Halep withdrew because of an injury. Tsurenko has yet to lose a set in the tournament.
“I don't feel any pressure because I'm playing players who are higher ranked than me, so I have nothing to lose,” Tsurenko said. “I can just beat them or lose to them. It just makes me happy to play in the main draw of big tournaments, for sure.”
Tsurenko will face fourth-seeded Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic in the semifinals. Safarova beat Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova 6–7 (4–7), 6–4, 7–5 in a match that lasted 2 hours, 56 minutes. In Cibulkova's three tournament matches, she has logged just under 9 hours on the court.
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In the other quarterfinals, second-seeded defending champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic faced seventh-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, and third-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark played Caroline Garcia of France.
