Mauresmo through to fourth semi-final
LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) World number one Amelie Mauresmo got away with a mid-match wobble to beat Anastasia Myskina 6-1 3-6 6-3 and reach the Wimbledon semi-final today.
The elegant Frenchwoman waltzed through the first set in 21 minutes before a sudden dip in form meant she dropped her first set of the tournament.
Fortunately, Mauresmo regained her poise just in time to book a Thursday semi-final date with 2004 champion Maria Sharapova.
''It wasn't so good in the second and third sets but the most important thing was to get another chance to reach the final,'' said Mauresmo, who has lost in the semis on her three previous visits to the All England Club.
''I'm feeling very good physically and hopefully I can go a bit further this time.'' The 26-year-old held a 7-1 career record over former French Open champion Myskina and began in confident fashion as she baffled the Russian with a mix of angled topspin drives and sliced approaches.
There was no sign of any resistance until Mauresmo's forehand began to malfunction and Myskina broke serve in the second game of the second set on her way to building a 3-0 lead.
Mauresmo had chances to break back in the seventh game but Myskina, who reached the final at Eastbourne last month, held on grimly before closing out the set.
Once Australian Open champion Mauresmo got her nose in front in the decider, however, she looked reasonably comfortable, if not at her best.
Myskina saved a match point at 2-5 when Mauresmo made a mess of a volley after a long baseline exchange, but she made no mistake in the next game when the Russian fired a service return into the net after one hour 23 minutes.
REUTERS SHB KP2237