London, England (SportsNetwork.com) - Petra Kvitova is one win away from securing a second Wimbledon title in four years.
In the first-ever Grand Slam semifinal between two Czech women, the sixth- seeded Kvitova defeated 23rd-seeded fellow left-hander Lucie Safarova 7-6 (8-6), 6-1 on Centre Court.
A tight first set was decided by a tight tiebreak, and the loss seemed to deflate Safarova.
Kvitova promptly raced out to a big lead in the second set, as her second break of the stanza made it 5-1 and she then closed out the match with a predictable hold by converting on her first match point on a beautiful day at the All England Club.
Kvitova won 11 of the last 13 points to advance, which she did with the help of 24 winners, including eight aces, in a match that ended in 1 hour, 20 minutes.
The formidable star is now a perfect 6-0 lifetime against the 27-year-old Safarova, with five of the meetings coming this year, including a win on grass in Eastbourne just two weeks ago.
The 6-foot Kvitova, the only player born in the 1990s to have won a major title, captured her lone Grand Slam championship by beating Maria Sharapova in the 2011 Wimbledon final. She's now 2-1 in her semis at the AEC, where she's 25-5 overall.
Safarova was performing in her first-ever Grand Slam semifinal in her 37th major event.
Kvitova's opponent on Saturday afternoon will be third-seeded French Open runner-up Simona Halep, of Romania, or 13th-seeded Canadian Eugenie Bouchard, who is appearing in a third straight major semifinal.
The 24-year-old Kvitova will now compete in her 16th career final, seeking a 12th title and her first one of 2014. It will mark her second Grand Slam final.
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