Charleston : It proved tough to be a top seed at the Family Circle Cup this week.No.2 seed Jelena Jankovic and No.3 seed Sara Errani were both upset on Friday in the quarterfinals, leaving sixth seeded Eugenie Bouchard as the lone top10 seed left in the semifinals.
Jankovic fell to Bouchard 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 to start the round of eight before 17 year old Swiss qualifier Belinda Bencic pulled off an even bigger shock by eliminating Errani, a runner-up at the French Open in 2012.Bencic, who had to win twice last weekend simply to make the field, took over in the final two sets for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory over the 26 year old Italian. Bencic hadn’t made it past the second round in two previous WTA events this year and wasn’t expecting to advance to her first tour semifinals.
Bencic will face Jana Cepelova, who defeated world No. 1 Serena Williams on Tuesday night to start off a week of surprises at the Family Circle. Cepelova defeated 12th seed Daniela Hantichova 6-2, 6-1.Errani looked confident and in control in the first set before getting overwhelmed by Bencic, who won 12 of the final 15 games. Errani talked to herself and even threw down her racket as Bencic’s crisp shots clipped lines and moved out of reach.
Earlier, Bouchard rallied in the third set by winning five of the last six games to oust Jankovic, a past champion who came in ranked eighth in the world.The 20 yearold Canadian reached the semifinals at a WTA tour event for the second time this season and fifth in her career.
On Saturday, she plays 14th seeded Andrea Petkovic of Germany as she seeks her first title.The 26 year old Petkovic topped ninth seeded Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic in three sets 6-3, 1-6, 6-1.
