MELBOURNE, Australia — Angelique Kerber is through to the Australian Open semifinals after a commanding 6-1, 6-2 win over Madison Keys.

For Kerber, who kicked off her career-best season with her run to the title here two years ago, it was her first quarterfinal at a major since her victory in the 2016 U.S. Open.

The momentum was all one-way until Keys broke for the first time in the fifth game of the second set, but Kerber recovered quickly to finish in 51 minutes.

Kerber has been the only major winner still in the women’s draw since her third-round win over Maria Sharapova.

Keys reached the U.S. Open final last September but lost in straight sets to Sloane Stephens.

Kerber’s next plays be the winner of a late quarterfinal match between top-ranked Simona Halep and No. 6 Karolina Pliskova.

n Caroline Wozniacki advanced to the semifinals with a 6-0, 6-7 (3), 6-2 win over Carla Suarez Navarro.

The second-seeded Wozniacki won the first seven games of the match but trailed 4-2 in the second set before her comeback.

Wozniacki had an early break in the final set to take a 4-2 lead, then broke again in the seventh game before serving out the match in 2 hours, 11 minutes.

Wozniacki, who can return to the No. 1 ranking with her first Grand Slam singles title, plays Elise Mertens in the semifinals.

After limping and wincing, and after failing to fend off a sixth break point, 16-time major champion Rafael Nadal was out of the Australian Open.

The sixth-seeded Marin Cilic advanced to his first semifinal in Australia since 2010 with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 2-0 victory. He will next play 49th-ranked Kyle Edmund, who beat third-ranked Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal for the first time.

“Tough moments – not (for) the first time here,” Nadal said. “I’m a positive person, but today is an opportunity lost to be in a semifinal for a Grand Slam and fight for an important title for me. It’s really tough to accept.”

Injuries to star players dominated headlines before the tournament. Five-time Australian Open finalist Andy Murray withdrew so he could have surgery on his hip. Nadal (right knee), six-time champion Novak Djokovic (right elbow) and 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka (left knee) left their fitness decisions to the eve of the tournament – it’s no surprise they are all out of the tournament. There are limits to human endurance, and Nadal found his on Tuesday.

“Somebody who is running the tour should think (a) little bit about what’s going on. Too many people getting injured,” said Nadal. “I don’t know if they have to think a little bit about the health of the players. I don’t know if we keep playing in this very, very hard surfaces what’s going to happen in the future with our lives.”

Nadal said the timing and the number of tournaments on the schedule and the proliferation of hardcourts are concerns. Other players have expressed similar views.

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