Quebec | Heather Watson through to semis

Heather Watson booked her place in the semi-finals of the Coupe Banque Nationale with a straight-sets victory over Rebecca Marino.

The British No 3 three needed just 72 minutes on court to seal a 6-3 6-4 win and set up a meeting with France’s Pauline Parmentier, the No 8 seed, in the final four in Quebec City.

Watson began the match strongly, breaking on her opponent’s first service game to go 2-0 up.
The Canadian wildcard rallied to level the match a game later, but was broken again as the Briton edged ahead 4-2.
Watson needed just one break of serve in the second set, and did not face any break points against her own serve, to take the win on her first match point.
It is a strong comeback from the Brit, who suffered first round disappointment at the US Open last month.
She was beaten by Russian Ekaterina Makarova at the first hurdle, the eighth year in succession she bowed out in the round one, having negotiated the qualifying rounds, beating fellow Brit Katie Swan in the process.
Watson and Parmentier have only played once before, in the 2012 Osaka quarter-finals, which was won by the Briton 7-5 6-3 en route to her maiden career title, the Japan Open.
Both players are going for their fourth career final; for Watson, it would be her first since Monterrey 2016, while for Parmentier a win would mark the first time the Istanbul champion has made two finals in the same year.
They are both also competing in their second semi-final of the season following Hobart for Watson and Istanbul for Parmentier.
In the other semi, two Americans, Jessica Pegula and Sofia Kenin, face off and also have had one previous meeting, in the first round of the 2016 Dothan ITF $50,000 event that Pegula won that match 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Both Kenin and Pegula are seeking to reach their maiden WTA final, each having made just one previous semi-final – Pegula in Washington in 2016 and Kenin in Mallorca this June.
Watson and Kenin have both reached the final four without dropping a set, while Parmentier and Pegula have conceded one each: Parmentier to Christina McHale in the second round and Pegula to Lauren Davis in the final round of qualifying.