Hingis into semi finals

The 25-year-old will face Maria Sharapova in the semi-final, who easily beat Anna-Lena Groenefeld 6-1 6-3 on Wednesday.

"Today probably wasn't all the prettiest game, but it was effective," Hingis said.

"It's more important to be in the semi finals of this event. It's a big one."

It rained breakpoints throughout the entire match. The "Swiss Miss" had fifteen on Safina's serve but managed to grab only five as the Russian player fought like a lion to keep her service games. The 19-year old could not find her game and she made 38 unforced errors throughout the match.

During the first set both players had their chances but Safina suffered with her returns and her backhand down the line. The Russian broke the Hingis serve in the sixth game of the set but the Swiss then quickly tapped onto her experience to claim the set for herself 6-3.

During the second set the former number one started serving better and she unleashed a shower of different shots onto the Russian.

The first break of the second set was in the sixth game when Hingis stuck her teeth in the Russian's serve.

Marat Safin's younger sister had chances to fight her way back into the match, breaking the Hingis serve in the 7th game, but it was not enough to turn the match around.

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