Caroline Garcia and Donna Vekic hit the semis, but Maria Sakkari out

Caroline Garcia forehand

Top seed Caroline Garcia and third seed Donna Vekic claimed contrasting wins to reach the semi-finals of the Nature Valley Open, but Maria Sakkari is out.

The traditional Wimbledon grass-court warm-up event had to be moved to an indoor hard-court facility due to poor weather, but most of the players have adapted well.

Frenchwoman Garcia came from a set down to beat Gabriela Ruse as she secured a 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1 victory in just under two hours.

“[Ruse is] a young player, she’s probably on her way up,” Garcia told WTANews.com. “She went for her shots, she’s very aggressive, solid on both sides.”

She added: “I was ready for a fight and I definitely got it, so I’m very happy with the way I fight and kept believing in myself.”

Garcia will face Jennifer Brady for a place in the final after the unseeded American accounted for fourth seed Sakkari’s exit as she beat the Greek 7-5, 6-3.

“I haven’t played a point yet on grass…but there’s nothing you can do. You can’t control the weather. I’m really happy with the way that I competed today,” Brady said.

“I had a bit of a slow start. She started very well. She was playing really aggressive, taking my serves early and cracking returns. She made me feel the pressure a bit, but I was happy with the way I hung in there and I was able to close it out on serve.”

Third seed Vekic had a more straightforward day as she beat eighth seed Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 6-4 to set up a semi-final encounter with Tatjana Maria, who defeated Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 7-6 (9-7).

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