Chan, who was ranked 116th in world ladies' singles, lost the first set to the French player and had a lackluster start to the second set, lagging 2-5 behind Mladenovic.

However, Chan rallied by breaking two of Mladenovic's serves to win the second set and tie 1-1 with her French rival.

The play at the beginning of the third set seesawed for a while before Chan broke Mladeniovic's serve again to take a 4-3 lead. She finally won the set 6-4 with five match points.

Chan's rival in the final of the event, to be held Sunday, will be Ayumi Morita of Japan, who defeated Chan Kai-chen of Taiwan 6-2, 7-6 in another semi-final match Saturday.

The Taipei event, which carries US$100,000 in prize money, has attracted the participation of 130 players from around the world.

( By Lin Wan-ting & Bear Lee )