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Enlarge Photo Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia celebrates after defeating Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium in their quarter-final round... Russian teen-ager Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova displayed the temperament of a veteran as she beat Belgian 12th seed Yanina Wickmayer 7-5 3-6 6-1 to move into the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open Friday.Pavlyuchenkova was 5-1 down in the first set but saved three set points as she rallied back superbly, winning six straight games.
Wickmayer, who later said she had felt weak in her legs and drained in the mid-day heat, called for the courtside doctor when she was 6-5 down.
There was an almost identical start to the second set with Wickmayer going 5-0 up and again Pavlyuchenkova battled back before, this time, going down 6-3.
Buoyed by her spirited resilience, the 19-year-old powered through the third set to take her place in the last four.
Pavlyuchenkova, who has now won nine straight matches having won in Istanbul earlier this month, will play the winner of the semi-final between compatriot Maria Sharapova and France's Marion Bartoli, which will be played later Friday.
Serbian former world number one Ana Ivanovic, looking in-form and confident, comfortably defeated Uzbeki qualifier Akgul Amanmuradova 6-1 6-3 to reach her second semi-final of the year.
Ivanovic, who reached the last four in the Italian Open in Rome, will be matched up against Belgian Kim Clijsters or Italian Flavia Pennetta.
Pavlyuchenkova said she had never doubted her ability to come back against Wickmayer, even when she was trailing 5-1 in the opening set.
"Maybe it sounds weird right now but I still felt I could come back because I have had a few matches like this where I have come back from say 4-0 down and won the set.
"At that moment I just thought because she was serving, 'Just try to break her, then try to hold my serve.' And I just tried to find my game for the next sets," she said.
"I guess I have always been like that since I was a little girl," she added.
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