Unseeded Garbine Muguruza underlined her return to form by reaching the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time Wednesday, setting up a clash with fellow two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep.
The 26-year-old Spaniard, a former world number one, defeated Russia's 30th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5, 6-3 in a hot and sunny Melbourne.
The other semi-final on Thursday sees top seed and home hope Ashleigh Barty face American 14th seed Sofia Kenin.
"Sometimes you don't feel great but you've got to fight and stay there," said Muguruza, now ranked 32 in the world, after reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final since Roland Garros in 2018.
"The first set was very hard, I think it lasted about an hour, but it was a very important set and I'm glad I got it."
- Irresistible Halep -
======================
"I know how to play against her so I was just focused on every point I played."
"But now I have more experience. That match helped me win the two Grand Slams that I have already, and maybe it will help me get the third one."