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Czech Lucie Safarova upset former champion Ana Ivanovic on Thursday to reach the final at the 2015 French Open. The 13th-seeded Safarova took down the seventh-seeded former world No. 1 Ivanovic in 7-5, 7-5 fashion in the first women's semifinal on Court Chatrier.
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Ivanovic raced out to a 3-0 lead in the opening set on her way to a seemingly commanding 5-2 cushion before Safarova somehow turned the match around.
The Czech lefty captured eight-of-nine games at one point to stun Ivanovic for a 7-5, 3-1 lead before the Serb fought back to level the second set.
Safarova broke for a 5-4 lead in the second and had a match point while serving in the next game, but Ivanovic staved it off and would knot things up at 5-all.
Ivanovic, however, was unable to consolidate the break in the next game, as Safarova broke right back for a 6-5 edge.
The Czech veteran then held serve by converting on her third match point and celebrated the biggest win of her career by laying down on her back on the famed red clay at Roland Garros.
Safarova is now 6-3 lifetime versus Ivanovic, including a 2-1 mark at the French. Ivanovic won a second-rounder here in 2008 and Safarova ultimately returned the favor in the third round last year.
The Serbian Ivanovic was the French Open champ in 2008 and runner-up in 2007.
The 28-year-old Safarova has appeared in at least the semis in two of the last four majors. She landed in the final four at Wimbledon last summer.
The capable Czech is 6-7 in her career WTA finals, including a title in Doha earlier this year.
Safarova's opponent in Saturday's final will be current world No. 1 Serena Williams or surprising 23rd-seeded Swiss Timea Bacsinszky, who's competing in her first-ever Grand Slam semi.
Williams is 23-3 in her career major semifinals.
She's 2-0 versus the 25-year-old Bacsinszky, including a straight-set quarterfinal win at Indian Wells back in March.
[SportsNetwork.com]
