Seventh seed Wang Xinyu of China beat Britain's Heather Watson 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4 in the quarter-finals of the Thailand Open in Hua Hin yesterday.
The marathon match at True Arena Hua Hin Sports Club lasted more than two and a half hours.
World No.81 Wang was the better player in the deciding set thanks to her good volley shots.
In today's semi-finals, she faces compatriot Lin Zhu who had few problems in her 6-2, 6-2 win against Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia.
The tournament is making a return after being called off for two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The ongoing edition offers a total purse of US$250,000.
Thailand 1 Romania 1
In the Davis Cup World Group I play-offs, Thailand and Romania drew 1-1 on the opening day of their tie at the National Tennis Development Centre, Muang Thong Thani.
In the first singles, Thailand Yuttana Charoenphon beat Nicholas David Ionel 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
In the second singles, Thailand No.1 Kasidit Samrej lost to Filip Cristian Jianu 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 2-6.
Today's action begins at 11am with Thailand's Pruchya Isaro and Thantub Suksumrarn against Marius Copil and Victor Vlad Cornea in the doubles. It will be followed by Kasidit v Ionel and Yuttana v Jianu.
The winners of the tie will reach World Group I.
Kyrgios avoids conviction
Australian star Nick Kyrgios yesterday pleaded guilty to assaulting a former girlfriend, but avoided a conviction for what the magistrate called a "single act of stupidity".
Appearing in a Canberra court, the Wimbledon finalist admitted assaulting then-girlfriend Chiara Passari on Jan 10, 2021, by pushing her to the ground after a heated argument.
Kyrgios said he was "not in a good place" at the time, and that he "reacted to a difficult situation in a way I deeply regret".
"I know it wasn't OK and I'm sincerely sorry for the hurt I caused," he said in a statement.
Magistrate Beth Campbell dismissed the case without conviction.
Campbell said Kyrgios acted poorly but the offence was not planned or premeditated and was a "single act of stupidity" by a young man attempting to remove himself from a tense situation. bangkok post/afp
