World Sport News

Tatjana Maria has kept her chances for her first final appearance on the WTA Tour. The number 79 in the world rankings surprisingly beat number seven seeded Czech Lucie Safarova 7:6 (7:3), 4:6, 6:4 at the grass court tournament in Mallorca and entered the semi-finals.

There, the 30-year-old will face Sofia Kenin of the USA, who had previously kicked top seeded Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia out of the tournament. Last year, Maria, the only remaining German player at the $250,000 tournament, was already in a WTA semi-final in Quebec/Canada, but failed there due to the Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck.

The former world number one Angelique Kerber surprisingly failed in the first round on the Spanish holiday island. Antonia Lottner retired in the round of 16, in which Carina Witthöft also lost the German duel against Maria.