Caroline Wozniacki rolls past Catherine Bellis in Dubai quarterfinals

Caroline Wozniacki squashed 17-year-old American Catherine "CiCi" Bellis' magical run on Thursday with a convincing 6-3, 6-2 victory in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Wozniacki, the 2011 tournament champion, benefited from her younger opponent's 33 unforced errors to advance to her sixth career semifinal appearance in the tournament. The former World No. 1 said she made it a point to challenge Bellis, who posted a stunning upset over World No. 6 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in her previous match.

"I have been there myself, so I know what it's like," Wozniacki said of Bellis, who is just six months into her pro career. "I just try to put myself in her shoes.

"For me, it was just very important to stay strong and not show any negative emotions but just stay positive all the time, show that I have the presence on court and really make her play those extra balls and points.

"She would really have to play on a really high level to beat me, because I was going to give that extra ball back. I wasn't going to just give it to her."

Bellis claimed a 3-1 lead in the first set before Wozniacki reeled off nine straight games to claim the opening set and a 4-0 advantage in the second set.

"She's just really solid, really solid off the ground and serving well," Bellis said. "(She was) more consistent than me today. Moved me a lot. I think all that combined.

"She's such a great player. It was really fun for me to see what the highest level is."

Wozniacki advanced to face Latvian Anastasija Sevastova, who recorded a 6-4, 7-5 victory over China's Qiang Wang. The 35th-ranked Sevastova reached her first semifinal appearance of the season.

Ukraine's Elina Svitolina cruised to a 6-0, 6-4 triumph over American Lauren Davis to set up a match with top-ranked German Angelique Kerber.

Kerber wasted little time in dispatching with Croatian Ana Konjuh in a 6-3, 6-2 win.