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London - Romania's Simona Halep swept into her first Wimbledon semi-final with a crushing 6-4, 6-0 victory over former finalist Sabine Lisicki on Wednesday.
Halep recorded her 250th career win in memorable fashion as the world number three dismissed German 19th seed Lisicki, beaten by Marion Bartoli in the final 12 months ago, in just 57 minutes on Centre Court.
The 22-year-old reached her maiden Grand Slam final at the French Open last month and, after winning 11 consecutive games to sink Lisicki, she will play Canada's Eugenie Bouchard for a place in the another major final at the All England Club.
"I played my best today and I was enjoying every moment. It was incredible to be on Centre Court. It was just my second time," Halep said.
"She had a 4-1 lead but I came back well after that. I'm really happy I could win.
"I have more confidence now and the secret is just to enjoy every match. I feel happy on court and I'm moving well."
Since losing in the Wimbledon second round last year, Halep has enjoyed a rapid rise up the rankings from 32nd 12 months ago to her current lofty position of third and now she stands on the verge of breaking new ground back in south-west London.
Halep, who was only the second Romanian to reach the last eight at Wimbledon, had already made the strong showings at both the Australian and French Opens this year, advancing to the final in Paris last month before losing a three-set classic against Maria Sharapova.
Lisicki, dubbed "Doris Becker" because of the similarities in her game to former Wimbledon champion Boris Becker, had only herself to blame because she appeared to be in a strong position after breaking to establish a 4-1 lead.
Halep refused to be bullied into submission by the big-serving German and hit back to completely turn the momentum her way.
A pair of breaks gave Halep a 5-4 advantage and she held her nerve to serve out the set, finishing with a crushing forehand on her second set point.
Lisicki had needed medical attention on a shoulder injury early in the final set of her fourth round win over Yaroslava Shvedova on Tuesday.
She had admitted it would need a "miracle" to make a complete recovery in time to face Halep and, looking less than 100 percent fit, there was never much sense a dramatic revival was on the cards as the Romanian went for the kill.
Halep broke in the first game of the second set and added two more breaks for good measure to seal the win as Lisicki collapsed in dismal fashion.
Lisicki had sobbed tears of frustration during her Wimbledon final loss against Bartoli last year, but she at least managed to keep her composure this time as the match slipped away.
Wimbledon results on Wednesday, the ninth day of the 2014 championships at the All England Club (x denotes seeded player):
Men
Quarter-finals
Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) bt Marin Cilic (CRO x26) 6-1, 3-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-2, 6-2
Grigor Dimitrov (BUL x11) bt Andy Murray (GBR x3) 6-1, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2
Roger Federer (SUI x4) bt Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI x5) 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-4
Milos Raonic (CAN x8) bt Nick Kyrgios (AUS) 6-7 (4/7), 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4)
Women
Quarter-finals
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN x13) bt Angelique Kerber (GER x9) 6-3, 6-4
Simona Halep (ROM x3) bt Sabine Lisicki (GER x19) 6-4, 6-0
