Muguruza beats Kvitova as both progress to last four at WTA Finals

Garbiñe Muguruza booked her place in the semi-finals with her third straight victory ©Getty Images

Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain sealed her spot in the semi-finals of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Finals with a three-set win over Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, who also qualified despite the defeat in Singapore today.

Muguruza, the current world number three, proved too strong for the two-times Wimbledon champion by claiming a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 success to set up a meeting with Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska in the last four.

The Spaniard, considered one of the rising stars in the women’s game, topped the White Group with a 100 per cent record having clinched three consecutive victories after she also beat German Angelique Kerber and Czech Republic's Lucie Šafářová.

All four players were in contention for the top two spots in the group going into the last round of matches and even though Šafářová couldn’t progress herself, her 6-4 6-3 success against Kerber was enough to send her team-mate through by virtue of Kvitova having won more sets.

The Czech will take on Maria Sharpova in her semi-final encounter.

“You know to be here for me is a great pay-off after the whole year and hopefully I can continue winning and playing like this,” Muguruza, who lost to American top seed Serena Williams in this year’s Wimbledon final, said.

“It's going to a challenge for me to see how much my body can handle, because now I don't have a day off.

“It's great to be in my position I think now, to be playing singles and doubles semi-finals.”

Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic scraped through to the semi-finals despite the three-set defeat to Spain's Garbine Muguruza ©Getty Images

While Muguruza had enjoyed two relatively straightforward wins in her opening matches, her contest with Kvitova was a much closer affair, with the Czech keen to dominate from the baseline with her impressive array of groundstrokes.

But it was the Spaniard who drew first blood, taking the opening set, but Kvitova, who won the WTA Tour Finals in 2011 showed the resilience of a champion and restored parity by claiming a hard-fought second.

The tense nature of the contest continued as the players traded blows in the decider, and Muguruza came within two points of defeat before turning the tables to secure a dramatic triumph.

The result sees her become the first competitor to reach the semi-finals of the season-ending event on debut since Kvitova achieved the feat in 2011.

Muguruza faces Radwanska in tomorrow’s opening match before Kvitova goes up against Sharapova.