• British No1 battles to 6-3, 7-5 victory against Russian opponent • Konta sets up match with Canadian wildcard Eugenie Bouchard

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Johanna Konta held off a spirited comeback from Daria Kasatkina to book her spot in the semi-finals of the Apia International in Sydney.

At a set and a break up the British No1, seeded sixth, appeared to be coasting towards a last-four place but her Russian opponent broke back immediately and then again to establish a 4-2 lead.

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But Konta, who made 31 winners and 30 unforced errors, dug deep to win five of the next six games for a 6-3, 7-5 victory in just under an hour and three-quarters as she set up a showdown with the Canadian wildcard Eugenie Bouchard.

Kasatkina, ranked 16 places below Konta at 26 in the world, claimed an upset win against the world No1 Angelique Kerber on Tuesday but was left to rue making double the amount of unforced errors (30) as winners (15).

The 19-year-old made a sluggish start in searing temperatures by dropping her opening service game and, although she got back on serve, Konta claimed what would prove to be a decisive break in the fourth game.

Konta broke in the first game of the second set but then dropped serve twice before hitting back immediately to level matters at 4-4.

The Sydney-born 25-year-old continued her resurgence by breaking Kasatkina for the final time in the 11th game and then held serve to complete a hard-fought triumph.

Meanwhile, Dan Evans mounted an impressive comeback to upset eighth seed Marcel Granollers and reach the quarter-finals in the mens’ tournament.

The British number three, ranked 67, struggled in the first set, but hit back impressively to win 1-6 6-3 6-3 in an hour and 43 minutes.

Evans was particularly dominant on his first serve, losing only seven points, and a single break in each of the last two sets was enough to topple the world number 37.

Evans will next play either top seed Dominic Thiem or Portuguese qualifier Gastao Elias as he continues his build-up to the Australian Open.

There was defeat, though, for British number eight Brydan Klein in the second round of the ASB Classic in Auckland.

Klein posted an excellent victory over Facundo Bagnis in round one, a player ranked 269 places higher, but Joao Sousa proved too strong, the Portuguese winning 6-3 6-4.