Former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki eased into the semi-finals of the US Open on Tuesday with a ruthless 6-0 6-2 win over wounded Latvian Anastasija Sevastova.
Sevastova, the first Latvian to reach a grand slam quarter-final, saw her US Open hopes come to a painful end when she rolled over her ankle chasing down a ball on Wozniacki's opening serve and was unable to challenge her Danish opponent despite bravely fighting on until the end.
With her opponent hobbled, Wozniacki showed no mercy and moved in for the kill, keeping Sevastova running from sideline to sideline.
"I've rolled my ankle several times so I feel real sorry for her. It happened early in the match," said Wozniacki, twice a US Open finalist.
"I just kept pushing her back and tried to make her move, it was kind of nerve-wracking because you don't know what to expect out there."
Wozniacki next meets second-seeded German Angelique Kerber, who was a 7-5 6-0 winner over Italy's Roberta Vinci.
Vinci fell apart after losing the opening set on a foot fault, allowing the No.2 seed to take last nine games.
Kerber, who has a chance to overtake Serena Williams at No.1 after the tournament, moved into her third grand slam semi-final of the year.
She won the Australian Open in January, then lost to Williams in the Wimbledon final in July.
At last year's US Open, Vinci stunned Williams in the semi-finals, ending the American's bid for a calendar-year grand slam.
On Tuesday, she was two points away from taking the first set when she served for it at 5-4, but was broken.
Then, trailing 6-5, and serving at love-40, Vinci was called for a foot fault on a second serve. That resulted in a double-fault that ceded the set.
As she walked to the sideline, Vinci looked at the line judge who made the call and smiled sarcastically, giving him a thumbs up and applauding with her racquet.
In the second set, Vinci won only 10 points.
Reuters wk
