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World No 1 Iga Swiatek made it through to the semi-finals at Indian Wells for the third consecutive year after Caroline Wozniacki was forced to retire injured.
Wozniacki, the 2011 champion here, retired with a right toe problem after losing six straight games to Swiatek.
The 33-year-old mother-of-two proved she is still competitive following a three-and-a-half-year hiatus from professional tennis and started well in their highly anticipated clash by taking a 4-1 lead.
That was before Swiatek won what turned out to be the last six games of the match.
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Wozniacki had Hollywood actor Will Ferrell showing his appreciation for this winner during her match against Swiatek…
“I have a huge respect for her and I’m sad she has to go that way I’m sure she will recover and I hope she will be ready for Miami,” Swiatek said.
“I just wanted to hit the ball clean. I had many chances but with her defence she puts pressure on her opponents. Sometimes I made mistakes but I had to remain patient and calm.”
Swiatek will take on Marta Kostyuk for a place in the final after the Ukrainian won 18 of the last 21 points to claim a 6-0 7-5 win over Anastasia Potapova.
It was Kostyuk’s first win in three career meetings with Potapova.
“I practiced with [Swiatek] in Doha, I was really looking forward to actually playing her in the match,” Kostyuk said, looking ahead to the semis. “I think it will be a great match.
“I don’t know what else to say, because I’m excited, and I played her in Paris three years ago, and it was a bit different match. We were both in different positions. Even more exciting now.”
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Highlights of Marta Kostyuk against Anastasia Potapova in the quarter-finals
Laura Robson on Wozniacki’s comeback from maternity leave
“I feel like she’s had a tricky 2024 and when she came back she thought it would be a bit easier and had that run at the US Open and then took a few months off and didn’t play anything post September until the start of this year,” the former British No 1 told Sky Sports Tennis.
“I think that gap has kind of showed over the first few months of the season.”
Chanda Rubin: It’s been a struggle
“It’s been a bit of a struggle for Caroline coming back from maternity leave. She thought she would get back to this level a little bit quicker.”
Gauff through to semi-finals for first time
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Highlights of Coco Gauff against Yue Yuan in the quarter-finals
Coco Gauff made it through to the semi-finals for the first time in her career after defeating China’s Yuan Yue 6-4 6-3.
In the semi-finals, Gauff will face the winner of Friday night’s match between 2022 Indian Wells runner-up Maria Sakkari of Greece and American Emma Navarro.
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