(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-01-04 16:21

CANBERRA - China's top ranked women's tennis player Li Na extended her giant-killing run at the WTA Gold Coast hardcourt tourney as she rallied past fourth seeded Swiss Patty Schnyder in the semifinals on Friday.

Li Na of China plays a backhand return during her game against Patty Schnyder of Switzerland at the Australian Women's Hardcourt Championships on the Gold Coast, Australia, Friday, Jan. 4, 2008. Li won the match 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. [Agencies]

The 25-year-old Li, now ranked 29th in the world, enjoyed an impressive comeback from her rib injury dating back to June 2007, upsetting seventh seed Sybille Bammer from Austria and Czech top seed Nicole Vaidisova en route to her 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 semifinal victory.

It was also her third top 20 triumph on her return in the new season and will be featuring in her first final in seven months while Schnyder, a two-time champ at the Gold Coast, has been striped off the chance to score a hat-trick.

Li dropped an early break in the fourth game of the opening set and after an exchange of break the Swiss drew first blood at 6-3 with one break up.

After squaring off the match at 6-3 in the second set, Li seemed in control over the game but the deciding third set was a more erratic affair, with both players dropping nine serves in all.

However, it was the Chinese who wrapped up the one hour, 48 minutes thriller.

Li was 16th in the world in January 2007, her best ever position and the highest by a Chinese player, but suffered a rib injury during a pre-Wimbledon warm-up event.