The highest-remaining women’s seed Angelique Kerber is comfortably through to the Brisbane International semifinals after a 6-4, 6-4 result over Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova on Thursday.
The No.3 seed endured first-serve percentage of just 54 per cent, trading breaks with Pavlyuchenkova before finally holding to take the first set.
World No.28 Pavlyuchenkova, 24, made 14 unforced errors in the first set and 27 overall.
Kerber – fresh from her fourth consecutive top 10 year-end finish – held her nerve in the second set against the former Brisbane runner-up to take the match in 82 minutes, converting five of seven break points in her fifth victory over the former Brisbane finalist in eight meetings.
“We had two months off. It’s not so easy to start the year and to come back,” Kerber said.
“The most important thing to think is to start easy, not playing the first matches 100 per cent because I think you need time with the weather, jet lag, everything.”
Kerber awaits the winner of No.6 seed Carla Suarez Navarro and unseeded American Varvara Lepchenko for a place in the final.