SYDNEY — Two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia has booked a semifinal berth at the Sydney International, while fourth-seeded Grigor Dimitrov advanced to the men's quarterfinals of the Australian Open tune-up event.
The 30-year-old Kuznetsova, who won the 2004 U.S. Open and 2009 French Open, beat Sara Errani of Italy 7-6 (1), 6-0 on Wednesday and will meet either 2015 Sydney runner-up Karolina Pliskova or top-seeded Simona Halep in the semifinals.
Dimitrov advanced with a 7-6 (2), 6-4 win over Uruguay's Pablo Cuevas. Joining him in the men's quarterfinals are Nicolas Mahut of France, who beat Andreas Seppi 6-3, 1-6, 6-3, and Gilles Muller of Luxembourg, who advanced when second-seeded Dominic Thiem of Austria retired with an injury while trailing 7-6 (2) 2-2.