By TERRY MADDAFORD
Francesca Schiavone is the new darling of the Auckland tennis set, but she can expect some opposition when she steps on to the Stanley St courts for today's semifinals.
The bubbly 20-year-old Italian beat long-time favourite and seventh seed Cara Black to win the hearts of the fourth-day crowd
at the ASB Bank Classic.
Schiavone's straight-sets win yesterday, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, in a little under two hours continued the giant-killing run of unseeded players and booked her a semifinal against Meilen Tu, who had earlier come from a set down to topple eighth-seed Lilia Osterloh in an all-American quarter-final, 2-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-4.
Schiavone has yet to drop a set this week.
The miserable run by seeded players continued when fifth seed and defending champion Anne Kremer went out 1-6, 4-6 to unseeded German Marlene Weingartner - another racing up the popularity ladder - in just 70 minutes.
Tu set the tone for the day when she fought all the way to upset Osterloh.
Tu, of the deliberate serve and seemingly patience to burn, appeared overawed in the first of the quarter-finals.
"I did not feel like my feet were alive," she said later. "It looked bad for me when I was a set and 3-5 down. I thought that if I didn't change things I was going to lose 3-6."
Change she did.
She kept the ball away from Osterloh's forehand, fought back to 5-5 and 6-6, and then raced through the tiebreak 7-1. The third set went with serve to 4-4 before Osterloh dropped her serve, leaving Tu to finish with a flourish.
"I'm not very big," joked 1.63m Tu. "So I have to raise my aggression level. But at this level no one gives you a match."
Unlike Tu who has reached a WTA semifinal before, Weingartner is into uncharted territory, after her win over Kremer.
The 20-year-old German, who last night revealed her blossoming romance with Australian Davis Cup player Andrew Ilie, raced through the first set 6-1 against Kremer in just 23 minutes.
The second was tighter, Weingartner dropping the crucial fourth game when she was serving for a 3-1 lead.
But again her fighting qualities were to the fore as she broke Kremer in the seventh for 4-3 and went on to win 6-4.
"I have beaten three top 50 players in a row," said Weingartner who is here for the fourth time. "But some unexpected players win here."
Just ask Tu, Weingartner - who now has a 5-0 record over Kremer - and Schiavone, who was all bustling aggression in beating Black.
She was taken to a tiebreaker in the first set and with the crowd warming to her - in temperatures which reached around 40 degrees on court - dropped the first three games of the second before mounting a winning run in shutting out Black 6-4.
"I want to tell you and the people here I'm happy," Schiavone said. "I hope the people like me."
Armed with a tactical plan after watching Black's previous match, Schiavone gave Black little respite with some solid ground strokes as she wrapped up the two-set battle.
And that after having a blister treated in the second set.
The semifinals start at noon today.
By TERRY MADDAFORD
Francesca Schiavone is the new darling of the Auckland tennis set, but she can expect some opposition when she steps on to the Stanley St courts for today's semifinals.
The bubbly 20-year-old Italian beat long-time favourite and seventh seed Cara Black to win the hearts of the fourth-day crowd
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