Zheng Qinwen eliminated from Charleston Open by Ekaterina Alexandrova

Ninth-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia defeated Chinese No. 3 seed Zheng Qinwen 6-1, 6-4 in the women's singles quarterfinals at the Charleston Open in Charleston, South Carolina, on Friday, advancing to the last four at the tournament.

Alexandrova had beaten Zheng twice in their previous two meetings, and found her rhythm much more quickly than China's reigning Olympic gold medalist in their third match. She broke Zheng twice in the first five games of the first set for a dominant 5-0 lead. Although the Chinese star held serve in the sixth to avoid being swept, Alexandrova hit a backhand down the line to clinch the seventh game, leading 1-0 in the match.

The second set was closer, but Zheng still surrendered a third break, and trailed 2-0 after two games. She earned three break points, but failed to convert any of them. After Zheng returned wide to concede the 10th game, she suffered her third straight loss against the same opponent.

Zheng called a medical timeout during the second set to deal with her right elbow, but it didn't help much, as she trailed in first serve percentage, and points won on first serve and second serve, among other statistics.

Alexandrova will face American top seed Jessica Pegula in the semifinals. The other last four match will feature two other American players, eighth-seeded Amanda Anisimova and Sofia Kenin.