PATTAYA, Thailand (AP)—Fourteen years after she last made the championship round in the event, Thailand's Tamarine Tanasugarn advanced to the final of the Pattaya Open with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Sesil Karatantcheva on Saturday.
The 32-year-old Tanasugarn got two breaks to go up 3-0 and later extended the lead to 5-2 with her superior baseline game before taking the first set in 30 minutes.
Tanasugarn carried the momentum into the second set, breaking the Kazakh immediately before holding in a second game that lasted 13 minutes. The 6-0 scoreline in the second set disguised the fact she had to save several break points.
It was tough for me because I have had a fever since last night. There were several games that went to a lot of deuces. But I was very pleased,'' Tanasugarn said.No matter what happens in the final, it's a bonus for me.''
Karantancheva, formerly of Bulgaria, was playing in her first tour semifinal in five years.
Tanasugarn will meet the winner of the later semifinal between her former doubles partner Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan and top-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia.