Kimberly Birrell is well aware of the power-packed threat posed by Adelaide International semifinal opponent Victoria Mboko, but the popular Queenslander believes she possesses tools of her own to counter the rising Canadian star on Day 5 at The Drive.
Birrell, a wildcard at the WTA 500 tournament, survived cramps and three hours of titanic battle to edge Romanian qualifier Jaqueline Cristian 5-7 6-1 7-5 and progress to her first semifinal at that level.
After recovering from that gruelling baseline rally-a-thon against the grinding Cristian, Birrell plans to fight fire with a different form of fire when she faces Mboko, with a spot in the final on the line.
"She hits the ball huge," Birrell said. "Her quality of shot and the way she's able to reproduce it is impressive.
"She's got a good serve and weapons. But I think I do too - I've got my own weapons up my sleeve.
"My return is one of my best attributes, so I definitely will not shy away from her serve and I'll try to take it to her.
"You never know what can happen on the day."
No.8 seed Mboko overcame a mid-match stagger to dethrone reigning Adelaide and Australian Open champion Madison Keys 6-4 4-6 6-2.
It was the 19-year-old Canadian's fifth three-setter in as many matches - including the United Cup - since arriving in Australia.
She has met Birrell once, in the first round of last year's Canadian Open, which Mboko took in straight sets en route to her landmark, career-changing maiden Masters triumph.
Mboko enjoyed the support of her home fans on that occasion in Montreal.
It will be the complete reverse of that this time, a backdrop Mboko is ready for.
"She's a super solid player," she said of Birrell. "I'm expecting a big fight tomorrow. "She also has the crowd advantage, so that's good for her.
"I've played so many times when the crowd's against me. It's a part of the sport and it happens.
"I mean, every player who plays in their country is going to have the home crowd support, so it's completely normal. At the end of the day I just want to focus on what I have to do on court."
Third seed Mirra Andreeva thumped Australian hope Maya Joint 6-2 6-0 on Thursday night to set up a semifinal date with ninth-seeded Diana Shnaider
Men's No. 2 seed Tommy Paul will face eighth-seeded Tomas Machac after both advanced with straight-sets quarterfinal victories.
Paul defeated Aussie hope Aleksandar Vukic 6-3 6-2 in barely an hour, while Machac was too good for Spaniard Jaume Munar 6-4 6-4.
Machac holds a 2-1 head-to-head advantage, all three best-of-three stoushes going the distance.
Paul is ready for the unique skill set that Machac brings to the table.
"He's very athletic, very fast," Paul said. "He does have that Czech backhand down-the-line that all of them hit so well, But I think he's a bit more dynamic for the most part.
"He's always somebody who I've had amazing matches with, so I've got to be ready and prepared."