The World No. 26 Simona Halep advanced into the semifinal with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over the 24th seed Croatia's Petra Martic, while Iga Swiatek also advanced in style dismantling Madison Keys of America here at the Indian Wells on Wednesday.

Former World No.1 Halep, became this year's first semifinalist at Indian Wells. The two-time Grand Slam champion Halep took less than an hour to breeze past Petra Martic and secured a semifinal clash with Iga Swiatek of Poland.

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Third seed Iga Swiatek won her ninth consecutive match at WTA 1000 events with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over 25th seed Madison Keys of the United States in the quarterfinals.

Swiatek dominated her opponent with heavy groundstrokes forcing errors from big-hitting Keys. Simona Halep will face Iga Swiatek in the Indian Wells semi-finals on Friday.

The World No. 26 Simona Halep advanced into the semifinal with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over the 24th seed Croatia's Petra Martic, while Iga Swiatek also advanced in style dismantling Madison Keys of America here at the Indian Wells on Wednesday.

The World No. 26 Simona Halep advanced into the semifinal with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over the 24th seed Croatia's Petra Martic, while Iga Swiatek also advanced in style dismantling Madison Keys of America here at the Indian Wells on Wednesday. Former World No.1 Halep, became this year's first semifinalist at Indian Wells. The two-time Grand Slam champion Halep took less than an hour to breeze past Petra Martic and secured a semifinal clash with Iga Swiatek of Poland. ALSO READ: Olympic medallist Aliaksandra Herasimenia, who fled Belarus, forced into exile again as Ukraine attacked Third seed Iga Swiatek won her ninth consecutive match at WTA 1000 events with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over 25th seed Madison Keys of the United States in the quarterfinals. Swiatek dominated her opponent with heavy groundstrokes forcing errors from big-hitting Keys. Simona Halep will face Iga Swiatek in the Indian Wells semi-finals on Friday.

Indian Wells: Simona Halep registers clinical win over Petra Martic, Iga Swiatek storms into semifinal

Petra Martic kept her composure in a seesaw battle with Emma Raducanu on Sunday to advance to the Round of 16 with a hard-fought 6-7(3) 6-4 7-5 win at Indian Wells.

Raducanu was outstanding in the first set tiebreak, spraying winners around the court, but her energy and service speed dipped in the second set as she appeared to struggle with some physical discomfort and Martic took advantage to level the contest.

The 11th-seeded U.S. Open champion Raducanu bounced back in the third and was serving for the match at 5-4 but the Croatian stepped up her defence to break the British teenager.

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Raducanu sent a forehand long on match point to end the marathon, two-hour and 46-minute contest under sunny desert skies on Stadium One.

"I'm happy that I stayed calm when I was not playing so good," Martic said in an on-court interview. 
 
"I think the match was up and down from both sides. We both had some good periods and bad ones out here, so I'm happy I was able to let that go and just focus on the next point."

The win was Martic's first over a top 20 opponent since 2019.

In the evening session, 2015 champion Simona Halep defeated Coco Gauff 6-3 6-4 to reach the second week.

Gauff, who turned 18 on Sunday, had no answer for the Romanian veteran's superb shotmaking on a blustery night on Stadium One.

"I'm not scared about the wind. I never have been, even when I was a kid," Halep said.

"I think I played smart tonight because from one side you had to play different, from the other side a little bit different. So I think I managed very well all the moments."

Wearing a ribbon with the colors of the Ukrainian flag, German Angelique Kerber beat Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-1 and said she tried to put the fact that she was playing against a Russian out of her mind.

"Right now, there's much more important issues in the world," Kerber told reporters.

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"People are fleeing, the whole situation is topic number one and is frightening for everyone. As I've said, I don't live far from the situation.

"My grandparents are there and so of course you're checking the news every five minutes or every hour, you're in touch with folks. I think right now that's the topic that is occupying my mind and everyone else here."

Next up for Kerber is a third round showdown with third seed Iga Swiatek, who defeated Clara Tauson earlier in the day.

Petra Martic kept her composure in a seesaw battle with Emma Raducanu on Sunday to advance to the Round of 16 with a hard-fought 6-7(3) 6-4 7-5 win at Indian Wells.

Petra Martic kept her composure in a seesaw battle with Emma Raducanu on Sunday to advance to the Round of 16 with a hard-fought 6-7(3) 6-4 7-5 win at Indian Wells. Raducanu was outstanding in the first set tiebreak, spraying winners around the court, but her energy and service speed dipped in the second set as she appeared to struggle with some physical discomfort and Martic took advantage to level the contest. The 11th-seeded U.S. Open champion Raducanu bounced back in the third and was serving for the match at 5-4 but the Croatian stepped up her defence to break the British teenager. ALSO READ: Hecklers are an unfortunate part of sports: Andy Murray after Naomi Osaka reduced to tears at Indian Wells Raducanu sent a forehand long on match point to end the marathon, two-hour and 46-minute contest under sunny desert skies on Stadium One. "I'm happy that I stayed calm when I was not playing so good," Martic said in an on-court interview. "I think the match was up and down from both sides. We both had some good periods and bad ones out here, so I'm happy I was able to let that go and just focus on the next point." The win was Martic's first over a top 20 opponent since 2019. In the evening session, 2015 champion Simona Halep defeated Coco Gauff 6-3 6-4 to reach the second week. Gauff, who turned 18 on Sunday, had no answer for the Romanian veteran's superb shotmaking on a blustery night on Stadium One. "I'm not scared about the wind. I never have been, even when I was a kid," Halep said. "I think I played smart tonight because from one side you had to play different, from the other side a little bit different. So I think I managed very well all the moments." Wearing a ribbon with the colors of the Ukrainian flag, German Angelique Kerber beat Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-1 and said she tried to put the fact that she was playing against a Russian out of her mind. "Right now, there's much more important issues in the world," Kerber told reporters. ALSO READ: Premier League: Chelsea strike late to beat Newcastle 1-0 amid off-field turmoil, Arsenal outclass Leicester "People are fleeing, the whole situation is topic number one and is frightening for everyone. As I've said, I don't live far from the situation. "My grandparents are there and so of course you're checking the news every five minutes or every hour, you're in touch with folks. I think right now that's the topic that is occupying my mind and everyone else here." Next up for Kerber is a third round showdown with third seed Iga Swiatek, who defeated Clara Tauson earlier in the day.

Indian Wells: Petra Martic, Simona Halep advance to Round of 16, Emma Raducanu crashes out

World number two Karolina Pliskova beat Croatia's Petra Martic 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the inaugural Zhengzhou Open on Sunday to win the 15th WTA singles title of her career and her first in China.

The title was the Czech's fourth of the season to add to trophies won in Brisbane, Rome and Eastbourne — moving her ahead of Australian world number one Ash Barty and Canadian Bianca Andreescu for most titles won so far this year.

Pliskova won 74 per cent&nbsp;of her first service points, fired seven aces and broke the Croatian four times in a rain-interrupted match that was initially delayed by more than five hours due to heavy rain.

Martic, who held a superior 4-1 head-to-head record against Pliskova and also beat her at Roland Garros earlier this year, took a 2-0 lead in the first set when she broke the top seed in the opening game.

However, that was the only time Pliskova conceded a break of serve and she soon took control with powerful groundstrokes, using the full width of the court to smash winners and passing shots with precision.

Martic's service game suffered —&nbsp;she won only 53 per cent of her first service points — and Pliskova duly took advantage to punish the seventh seed and win five games in a row.

Pliskova's consistency in the baseline rallies was a force to reckon with and Martic had no answer to her superior court coverage, eventually conceding the 96-minute match after saving one championship point.

World number two Karolina Pliskova beat Croatia's Petra Martic 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the inaugural Zhengzhou Open on Sunday to win the 15th WTA singles title of her career and her first in China.

World number two Karolina Pliskova beat Croatia's Petra Martic 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the inaugural Zhengzhou Open on Sunday to win the 15th WTA singles title of her career and her first in China. The title was the Czech's fourth of the season to add to trophies won in Brisbane, Rome and Eastbourne — moving her ahead of Australian world number one Ash Barty and Canadian Bianca Andreescu for most titles won so far this year. Pliskova won 74 per cent of her first service points, fired seven aces and broke the Croatian four times in a rain-interrupted match that was initially delayed by more than five hours due to heavy rain. Martic, who held a superior 4-1 head-to-head record against Pliskova and also beat her at Roland Garros earlier this year, took a 2-0 lead in the first set when she broke the top seed in the opening game. However, that was the only time Pliskova conceded a break of serve and she soon took control with powerful groundstrokes, using the full width of the court to smash winners and passing shots with precision. Martic's service game suffered — she won only 53 per cent of her first service points — and Pliskova duly took advantage to punish the seventh seed and win five games in a row. Pliskova's consistency in the baseline rallies was a force to reckon with and Martic had no answer to her superior court coverage, eventually conceding the 96-minute match after saving one championship point.

Karolina Pliskova beats Martic in Zhengzhou to win her fourth title of 2019

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Indian Wells: Simona Halep registers clinical win over Petra Martic, Iga Swiatek storms into semifinal

Indian Wells: Petra Martic, Simona Halep advance to Round of 16, Emma Raducanu crashes out

Karolina Pliskova beats Martic in Zhengzhou to win her fourth title of 2019