Safina toils into first semi - final

1 Jul 2009, 12:52 am   -   Source: Reuters
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Dinara Safina of Russia reacts during her quarter-final match against Sabine Lisicki of Germany at the Wimbledon tennis championships, in London June 30, 2009. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

Dinara Safina of Russia reacts during her quarter-final match against Sabine Lisicki of Germany at the Wimbledon tennis championships, in London June 30, 2009. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

LONDON (Reuters) - Top seed Dinara Safina came from a set down to reach her first Wimbledon semi-final with an unconvincing 6-7 6-4 6-1 victory over Germany's unseeded Sabine Lisicki on Tuesday.

LONDON (Reuters) - Top seed Dinara Safina came from a set down to reach her first Wimbledon semi-final with an unconvincing 6-7 6-4 6-1 victory over Germany's unseeded Sabine Lisicki on Tuesday.

Safina, whose tortured expressions suggest she is as much battling her own game as her opponent's, remained on course for a first career grand slam title despite a flurry of double faults at crucial moments on Centre Court.

The two shared a break of serve each in the opening set which Lisicki clinched 7-5 in a tiebreak when the Russian ballooned a second serve long for her seventh double fault of the set.

She restored order in the second with a single break enough to help her level the match and Safina raced through the third when a Lisicki mishit dropped wide.

She will play third seed and defending champion Venus Williams for a place in Saturday's final.

(Editing by Miles Evans)

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