Bouchard had a lot of support in the crowd -- there were people with Canadian flags painted on their faces, and a couple even wearing the national hockey jerseys.
Her own personal cheering section, the "Genie Army," serenaded her throughout the match, at one point competing directly with a group of Li's supporters across the stadium who chanted "Let's Go Li Na" in Mandarin.
Bouchard was playing only her fourth Grand Slam tournament, was seeded 30th and became just the second Canadian to reach a major semifinal.
"I think maybe she will be best player in the world. But today (I'm) so lucky," said Li, who jokingly apologized to the Genie Army. "Sorry about that. If you guys be happy, I will go home."
Li considered quitting the tour after the French Open last year, when she was beaten in the second round and was struggling with the off-court pressure. After reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, the Chinese star opted against retiring and then reached the U.S. Open semifinals. Li, who turns 32 next month, has gone another step further in Australia.
After saving a match point in the third round against Lucie Safarova, she has started all her matches aggressively.
It worked against Bouchard, who didn't win a point in her first three service games. In the second set, the pair exchanged four service breaks in the first six games before Li finally took charge.
The next rankings list will reflect a big jump for Bouchard, who was one of the few people unsurprised by her rapid improvement.
"I wouldn't say I exceeded my expectations, but I'm happy with how I did," Bouchard said. "I always want to do better. To me it's not a surprise. I've been working hard my whole life to do this -- play at Grand Slams and do well. It's not an overnight thing."
