Garbine Muguruza has fought off Svetlana Kuznetsova to reach the Cincinnati Open semi-finals with a 6-2 5-7 7-5 win.
The Wimbledon champion clinched her second straight Ohio semi-final berth with a forehand deep into the corner that Kuznetsova could only steer into the net.
Muguruza needed 2 hours, 45 minutes – the longest of her three tournament matches – to clinch the win. It came less than 24 hours after she spent 2 hours, 18 minutes on the court and fought off three match points to overcome Madison Keys in the round of 16.
Kutznetsova, a two-time grand slam champion and the draw’s oldest woman at 32, spent eight more minutes on the court in this match than she did in her previous two combined matches.
Top seed Karolina Pliskova beat Camila Giorgi 6-3 4-6 6-0 to advance to the quarters, while Julia Goerges booked her spot in the last eight win an upset win over fifth seed Elina Svitolina.