Luxembourg - Venus Williams beat top-seeded Roberta Vinci of Italy 7-6 (2), 6-4 on Friday to reach the semifinals of the Luxembourg Open.
Playing in her first tournament since the U.S. Open, Williams will next face Andrea Petkovic of Germany, who defeated Ksenia Pervak of Kazakhstan, 6-3, 6-2.
In the bottom half of the draw, Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia beat Lourdes Dominguez Lino of Spain, 7-5, 6-0 to set up a central European semifinal against Monica Niculescu of Romania, who defeated Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic, 6-0, 6-4.
Results: