No. 4 seed Sofia Kenin reached the French Open semifinals by defeating fellow American Danielle Collins for the first time on Wednesday in Paris.

The reigning Australian Open champion lost all three previous encounters with Collins in straight sets before her 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 quarterfinal victory at Roland Garros.

"I'm super happy. I know she plays really aggressive and I knew I needed to play aggressive myself, have a high first-serve percentage, and I think I did that," said the 21-year-old Kenin, who won 75 percent of her first service points (40 of 53) and finished with 38 winners and 26 unforced errors.

The two-hour, four-minute match was the fourth three-setter of the clay-court tournament for Kenin.

"The difference is definitely mental. I like winning in three sets," she said. "I know it's going to be tough, but I got the win and I'm proud of myself."

Collins tallied eight double faults, 34 unforced errors and 22 winners. She converted only two of her eight break chances, while Kenin converted five of nine.

Kenin's semifinal opponent Thursday will be No. 7 seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, who breezed to a 6-3, 6-3 victory Wednesday against unseeded German Laura Siegemund.

Kvitova has won both previous meetings with Kenin, including a 6-1, 6-4 victory on clay at the 2019 Mutua Madrid Open. Kvitova, a two-time Wimbledon champion, has never reached the finals in the French capital. She lost in the semifinals in 2012 to eventual winner Maria Sharapova.

The 30-year-old has not lost a set in this tournament, taking care of Siegemund in 78 minutes in the quarterfinals. Kvitova struck six aces and registered 22 winners and 15 unforced errors, compared to 12 winners and 20 miscues for Siegemund.

"I'm proud of everything I did today," Kvitova said. "Since I woke up, I felt pretty nervous. Going into the match, I knew it would be a big fight for every point. She's a tricky opponent. She has lots of variety in her game."

Kvitova claimed the only service break of the opening set in the fourth game. The second set was another story, with Kvitova losing her serve twice and breaking Siegemund four times -- including the clinching game.

"When I lost serve I broke her back, I was there, still staying positive and that was a big advantage for me today," Kvitova said. "I'm really happy overall with how I managed it."

Thursday's other semifinal pits qualifier Nadia Podoroska of Argentina against Poland's Iga Swiatek.

--Field Level Media