Stuttgart, Germany: Justine Henin of Belgium stayed on course for her first title since coming out of retirement by beating Jelena Jankovic — yet again — for a place in the semifinals of the Porsche Grand Prix.
Henin rallied to win Friday's match 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3 and bring her personal record against the Serb to 10-0.
"I still don't know how I did it," Henin said immediately after the match. "It was really intense."
Henin will play Shahar Peer of Israel, who stopped Dinara Safina's comeback from injury by beating the second-seeded Russian 6-3, 6-2.
Henin returned to the circuit in January, ending an 18-month retirement, and was runner-up in Brisbane and at the Australian Open.
Jankovic thought the Belgian was just as strong as before her retirement as the reigning No. 1.
"She is playing the same, she is still one of the best on clay. You have to hold your ground, as soon as you lose concentration she takes advantage, she has so much experience," said Jankovic, another former No. 1 who won the Stuttgart tournament in 2008 and was seeded fourth this time.
"We both played a good match and maybe I was a little unlucky at the crucial times. I had a break point at 5-5 in the second and I was hoping to pounce on her serve but she hit one of her best serves of the match with her second serve."
Henin had 44 unforced errors but also produced 43 winners, while Jankovic only had 18 winners to go with 23 unforced errors.
"She played very consistently in the first set and I was under a lot of pressure," Henin said. "I kept fighting and I am really happy to get through. It's the kind of match you are happy to win. ... It's only my fifth tournament, there are still ups and downs. I need a little time, I need matches, I need to make some adjustments."
Peer, Henin's semifinal opponent, is celebrating her 23rd birthday Saturday.
Safina, another former No. 1, was playing her first tournament since retiring from the Australian Open in January with a lower-back injury.
"Dinara is a good player but she hasn't played for a while," Peer said. "I was playing solid and I was aggressive."
Peer made only three unforced errors in the second set as she twice broke Safina's serve. Safina finished with 27 unforced errors, and Peer has now won the last four of her seven matches against the Russian.
Earlier, seventh-seeded Samantha Stosur also advanced to the last four with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Li Na of China to extend her winning streak on clay to 10.
Stosur, who will next face qualifier Anna Lapushchenkova of Russia, committed only seven unforced errors and never faced a break point.
"I didn't realize I had so few errors so that's a good result," the Australian said. "To get 10 in a row is really good."
Stosur, who is seeking her second title of the year after winning in Charleston, is projected to move up one place to a career-high No. 9 when the new rankings come out next week.
Lapushchenkova advanced to her first career semifinal in her first main draw appearance this year by overcoming Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic 7-6 (1), 1-6, 6-1.
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