Comeback earns Zheng final clash with Pennetta in Auckland
China's Zheng Jie produced a stirring comeback to beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 2-6 6-3 6-3 and advance to the final of the Auckland Classic where she will mee Flavia Pennetta.
Like her previous matches this week on the Auckland hard courts, Kuznetsova came out firing and raced to a 5-1 lead in the first set and looked set for a stroll into the final.
However, 28-year-old Zheng began to find her touch and while she lost the first set 6-2 the turnaround had begun.
Zheng lost the fifth game of the second set to go 3-2 down but won the next four to send the semi-final into a decider.
Both players held their opening service game before the Chinese again rattled off the next four games to give herself a 5-1 lead and the opportunity to serve out the match.
Two-time grand slam winner Kuznetsova would not go down without a fight and broke back to 5-2, but Zheng regained control and a wide forehand from Kuznetsova ended the match in two hours, 28 minutes.
Earlier, fourth seed Pennetta made short work of an error-prone Angelique Kerber with her comfortable 6-1 6-2 victory taking less than an hour.
