Unseeded Yan Chong Chen of China shocked No. 4 seed Montinee Tangphong of Thailand to set up a title clash with unseeded Melanie South of Great Britain, in the Mother's Recipe-ITF US$10,000 Women's Futures Tennis Tournament at the Shivaji Park Gymkhana in Mumbai on Friday.
Chen, ranked 713 in the Women's Tennis Association rankings, overcame Tangphong 7-6 (9-7), 6-2 while South dropped the second set before rallying to a 6-4, 0-6, 6-4 win in the other semi-final.
Chen took one hour and 34 minutes to get the better of the formidable Tangphong, the only seed remaining seed in the fray. After trading three breaks each in a tight opening set, the Thai lass did well to reach set point at 7-6 in the tie-breaker.
But a disputed call at that juncture, following a shot that went long, upset Tangphong's rhythm. Chen capitalised on her opponent's sudden lapse in concentration and went on to snatch the tie-breaker and set from Tangphong.
Tangphong seemed to have lost focus as she came into the second set. Chen had little trouble and broke Tangphong in the fourth, sixth and eighth games to book her place in the Saturday's final.
Great Britain's Melanie South surprisingly was stretched by qualifier Yang. But after trading a break each in the decider, the Briton came back to earn a crucial break in the ninth game before serving out the match after an hour and 49 minutes.
Results (Main Draw, Singles Semi-finals): Melanie South (Great Britain) bt Shu Jing Yang (China) 6-4, 0-6, 6-4; Yan Chong Chen (China) bt Montinee Tangphong (Thailand) 7-6 (9-7), 6-2.
Doubles (Final): Shu Jing Yang/Ying Yu (China) bt Yan-Hua Dong/Jie Hao (China) 6-2, 6-2.
Semi-finals: Yang/Yu (China) bt Chia Jung Chuang (Tpe)/Chin Bee Khoo (Mal) 6-1, 6-4; Dong/Hao (China) bt Wilawan Choptang (Thailand)/Diana Julianto (Indonesia) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 6-3.