KEY POINTS:
MELBOURNE - Nicole Vaidisova won the battle of the Czech teenagers with Lucie Safarova 6-1 6-4 to reach the semifinals of the Australian Open tennis championships today.
The 10th seed, 17, advanced to her second career Grand Slam semifinal with an elegant display of power-hitting against her 19-year-old rival in a one-sided quarterfinal on Rod Laver Arena.
Safarova, who dispatched reigning champion Amelia Mauresmo in the fourth round, struggled to match Vaidisova's accuracy and speed round the court and, despite improving in the second set, went down in an hour and 11 minutes.
Vaidisova, who reached the last four at Roland Garros last year, faces either unseeded Serena Williams, of the United States, or Israel's 16th seed Shahar Peer for a place in the final.
- REUTERS