Victory for world No 1 Angelique Kerber helped Dominika Cibulkova reach the semi-finals of the WTA Finals on Thursday.
Kerber, who had already advanced from the Red Group, beat Madison Keys 6-3 6-3 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium to finish 3-0 in the round robin and eliminate her American opponent.
Cibulkova beat Simona Halep 6-3 7-6 (7-5) earlier in the day, giving her a 1-2 record.
After losing her opening round robin matches to Kerber and Keys, the Slovak needed a straight-sets win to have any chance of advancing and she managed to keep her side of the bargain in a display full of determination.
Her victory ensured the unbeaten Kerber qualified for the semi-finals without hitting a ball and the top-ranked German returned the favour in the late match by beating Keys in straight sets to take Cibulkova through with her.
"Today I wasn't thinking about that I already was in the semis," Kerber said. "It was important to go out to win the match and win all three matches.
"Now I'm going to the semis with three really good matches which gives me a lot of confidence."
Halep had her left knee heavily strapped and was clearly in some discomfort but, knowing she needed a set to keep her hopes alive, she battled manfully to force a decider.
However, it was seventh seed Cibulkova who won the second-set tie-break and the match.
"This win is really, really big for me," said the 27-year-old. "I feel relieved. I'm really, really happy about my win, about the way I played and the way I handled the situation and the pressure.
"It seems like I'm playing my best tennis under the biggest pressure. To beat Simona in two sets - knowing that if I want to go further in the tournament, I have to beat her in two sets. That made me even stronger in the second set."
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Australian Open and US Open champion Kerber will be playing in the semi-finals of the season-ending tournament for the first time after failing to advance in three previous attempts.
In the semi-finals, Cibulkova will face White Group winner Svetlana Kuznetsova while Kerber will take on the winner of Friday's clash between Agnieszka Radwanska and Karolina Pliskova with Garbine Muguruza already eliminated.
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