Li Na will play Petra Kvitova in the semi-finals of the WTA Tour Championships after a 6-2 6-1 victory over an ailing Victoria Azarenka in Istanbul.
Having already taken care of both Sara Errani and Jelena Jankovic, the Chinese star opened up a 3-0 first-set lead against the Belarusian only for Azarenka to claw her way back to 3-2.
But the two-time Australian Open champion pulled up with a back injury in the sixth game and needed lengthy court-side treatment.
She carried on to complete the match but was clearly hampered by the problem and went down meekly to the 2011 French Open champion.
Azarenka was naturally disappointed with the situation but felt it was vital that she saw the match out for the sake of the spectators.
She said: “The most important thing is I just wanted to try to do my best for the fans who came and watched our match, and out of respect for my opponent.”
In the other semi-final, world number one Serena Williams will face Serbia’s Jankovic, who qualified for the last four despite losing in straight sets to Errani on Friday.
Williams had already booked her spot in the knock-out stage with a perfect record in the round-robin event and she is a red-hot favourite to add yet another title to her collection in an amazing year.
The American has already won 10 titles worldwide, securing another two Grand Slams in the process, and, despite being the wrong side of 30, has made it clear that she has no intention of slowing down and wants lots more silverware in the cabinet before she finally hangs up her racket.
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