Paris, Jun 6: Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova reached the semifinals for the third time in the past four Grand Slam tournaments, ending 142nd-ranked qualifier Yaroslava Shvedova's upset-filled run at the French Open 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 Wednesday.
Shvedova was trying to become the first qualifier in Roland Garros history to reach the semifinals -- and only the third to get that far at any major tournament, joining Alexandra Stevenson at Wimbledon in 1999, and Christine Dorey at the 1978 Australian Open.
Shvedova's victory over 2011 French Open winner Li Na in the fourth round marked the only time any defending Grand Slam champion was eliminated by a qualifier.
The fourth-seeded Kvitova's first French Open semifinal will be against No. 2 Maria Sharapova, who eliminated Kaia Kanepi earlier Wednesday.
