LIMOGES, France - Vera Zvonareva upset sixth seed Tatjana Maria at the Engie Open de Limoges to secure a place in the semifinals.

The former World No.2 took the first set 6-2, but the German battled back to level up in a second-set tiebreak 7-6(3).

But it was the Russian who wrapped it up, winning the decider 6-4 - and then leaving the court to prepare for her doubles semifinal alongside Timea Bacsinszky against Georgina Garcia Perez and Renata Voracova.

In a clash of two seeds, Russia's Evgeniya Rodina triumphed, beating Ana Bogdan 6-3, 6-4. The Romanian was stronger on serve, producing three aces to her opponent's none; and she committed no double-faults, compared to Rodina's trio. Nevertheless, it was the 29-year-old who came out on top, helped in no small part by winning 75% of her points on her second serve.

Earlier, Margarita Gasparyan was the first player through to the semifinals,  beating 20-year-old Anna Blinkova in two comprehensive sets, 6-4, 6-2.

She was followed by eighth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, who beat home favorite Pauline Parmentier 7-5, 6-1, serving up eight aces to the Frenchwoman's six.