Ruthless Ekaterina Makarova thrashes Simona Halep for semi-final place

Ekaterina Makarova has qualified for her first ever Australian Open semi-final after beating third seed Simona Halep 6-4 6-0 in Melbourne this morning.

It was a case of third time lucky for Makarova, as the Russian - a quarter-finalist in 2012 and 2013 - edged out her Romanian counterpart in 70 minutes to book a maiden semi-final berth.

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The world number 11 set the tone for the victory early on by racing into a three-game lead in a wayward start that acted as a wake-up call for Halep, who soon made it 3-2.

The duo both held their respective serves for the five remaining games, as Makarova kept her cool to serve out the opening set at 5-4.

Halep, a beaten quarter-finalist here last year, would not build on that showing, however, as Makarova broke her service game on three occasions to whitewash the 23-year-old in the second set.

Makarova will face either Maria Sharapova or Eugenie Bouchard in the next round.

Follow the action of Sharapova's quarter-final clash with Bouchard here.