WTA - Abu Dhabi semi finals

Semi final day in Abu Dhabi.

2021 Abu Dhabi Women’s Tennis Open - a WTA 500 tournament, on Hard, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 5-13 January 2021.

No defending champion:

This is a new event

Semi finals:

Aryna Sabalenka (4) (Belarus) v Maria Sakkari (9) (Greece)

Sabalenka led the head to head 3-1, including winning the past two encounters, both in February 2020. 

She began this one in devastating fashion, holding her first three serves to love, and breaking Sakkari in the second and sixth games, the latter to love.

At 5-1 and serving for the set, Sabalenka was unexpectedly broken, but next chance a love game sealed it 6-3.

Set two was more even until the fifth game where Sakkari saved four break points. A fifth was converted by Sabalenka and an insurance break in the seventh game allowed the Belarusian to serve for the match at 5-2. Another love game saw her through to the final, triumphing 6-3 6-2.

Marta Kostyuk (Ukraine) v Veronika Kudermetova (Russia)

In their first meeting, the teenage Kostyuk saved a break point in the third game before breaking Kudermetova in the fourth. The Russian immediately broke back, and repeated the dose in game seven. Kostyuk levelled things at 5-5, and a tie break was eventually required. 

After the players changed ends at 3-3, the next eight points all went against serve. Kostyuk lost one of the points on her serve at 7-8, giving Kudermetova a third set point which was converted. 7-6(8) to Russia.

Three breaks of serve in the second set, two against Kostyuk, saw Kudermetova lead 5-3 and serving for the match. Two match points were saved, and the second of two break points was converted. At 4-5, Kostyuk saved another pair of match points, but couldn’t avoid a third, leaving Kudermetova the victor 7-6(8) 6-4.

Veronika Kudermetova advances to her first final, where she will meet Aryna Sabalenka (4). By reaching the final, Kudermetova has achieved a new career high ranking of #36. A win would see this improve further.

Marta Kostyuk, by reaching the semis, jumps 21 places to a new career high ranking of #78.