What is the Rothesay Classic Birmingham schedule?

Here’s the line-up for an action-packed Saturday at the Edgbaston Priory Club:

• Barbora Krejcikova (CZE) vs Lin Zhu (CHN)
• Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) vs Anastasia Potapova

How to watch the Rothesay Classic Birmingham semi-final?

You can watch coverage of all semi-finals on the BBC digital channels and the WTA event on Prime Video.

Semi-final previews

Barbora Krejcikova (CZE, world No.12) vs Lin Zhu (CHN, world No.39)

Barbora Krejcikova and Lin Zhu each successfully progressed to a first career semi-final on the grass after their respective wins on the Ann Jones Centre Court.

They have yet to meet on Tour, but a win for Zhu against the world No.12 would mark her second highest career win after defeating the then world No.6, Maria Sakkari, at the Australian Open in January.

Top seed Krejcikova has her sights set on adding a grass title to her impressive list of accolades, having already realised the pinnacle of all prizes on the clay with her win at the Roland Garros in 2021.

The former world No.2 is back on the cusp of the top 10 having had a successful year, defeating world No.1 Iga Swiatek in Dubai in their second successive meeting.

Krejcikova maintains her 100% record in Birmingham, having ousted Spaniard Cristina Bucsa 6-3, 6-3 in the first round before winning two consecutive all-Czech battles in straight sets against Tereza Martincova and Linda Fruhvirtova.

Zhu, who was this year’s Thailand Open champion, is amongst five players to have become first time champions this season, holding on to her hopes of a second as she advances to the semi-finals for the first time in four appearances in Birmingham.

The world No.39, who beat Marino in the quarter-finals, defeated both the recently crowned Rothesay Open champion, Katie Boulter, and top 20-star Magda Linette in straight-sets prior to her meeting with the Canadian.

Despite only having played 23 career matches on the surface, Zhu put in an inspired performance this week, achieving her fourth top 20 win against third seed Linette.

Jelena Ostapenko (LAT, world No.17) vs Anastasia Potapova (world No.21)

The battle of the seeds will take place on the Ann Jones Centre Court as the No.2 seed Jelena Ostapenko battles it out with the No.4 seed Anastasia Potapova for a place in the final.

The two players have never met on the circuit prior to their semi-final encounter, but with a mere four ranking points between them, it’s anyone’s game.

A force to be reckoned with on the grass, the former Grand Slam champion Ostapenko has won a total of five Tour-level titles, including the Eastbourne International in 2021 and, four years prior, the Roland Garros.

The former champion is known for her brute force and aggressive style of play as the 26-year-old has come to be recognised as one of the best ball-strikers in the world.

The Latvian, ranked 17, is also no stranger to the fast-paced nature of the grass courts in Birmingham having played in the tournament five times since making her debut in 2016. However, her win today signifies her first-ever quarter-final win here at the Edgbaston Priory Club as she tees up her semi-final debut.

Looking to win her first WTA trophy since Dubai 2022, only Potapova now stands in her way of her first grass court final since the Rothesay International in Eastbourne last year.

Meanwhile, 22-year-old Potapova has two Tour titles to her name but is yet to win any silverware on this surface having lost to eventual champion Ons Jabeur here in the quarter-finals in 2021.

After winning her first WTA tournament in Istanbul last year, the world No.21 has since gone on to win her second in Linz before reaching her first Masters 1000 quarter-final at the Miami Open.

Standing in at ninth on the WTA Hologic list of Tour wins so far this season, Potapova booked her place in the semi-finals the hard way, losing the opening set against both Marta Kostyuk and Caty McNally before eventually winning in three.