Czech mates eyeing Hobart final

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Petra Kvitova and Iveta Benesova are on course to meet in an all-Czech final at the Hobart International after winning their quarter-finals Wednesday.

Kvitova, 18, fought back from a terrible start to beat Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 1-6 7-5 6-3 while Benesova defeated 2005 Hobart runner-up Gisela Dulko of Argentina 6-4 6-4.

Benesova's only WTA title win was at Acapulco in 2004 but she is eyeing a second after the draw opened up when all eight seeds were eliminated before the end of the second round.

"My game is going pretty good so far. The semis here is not bad, we'll see if it can be better," she said.

Benesova meets Magdalena Rybarikova in Thursday's semi-finals after the Slovakian won a see-sawing match with Hungarian qualifier Melinda Czink 6-0 1-6 7-6.

"I was the favorite for this match and she is from qualifying. She was a little bit tired I think but she played very well," Rybarikova told reporters.

Kvitova's semi-final opponent is Virginie Razzano of France, who advanced with an impressive 6-4 6-1 victory over Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova.

"I think I can win this tournament," Razzano said.

(Reporting by Julian Linden; Editing by Peter Rutherford)