Tennis: Sakkari into WTA Finals semis as Jabeur on track
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Maria Sakkari of Greece returns a shot against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka.
PHOTO: AFP
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FORT WORTH, Texas – Maria Sakkari had total confidence in herself, and it paid off after she advanced to the last four of the WTA Finals for the second straight year on Wednesday as Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur got her campaign back on track with a battling victory.
Sakkari secured her place in the semi-finals in Fort Worth, Texas, after cruising past Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 6-4.
The Greek breezed through the first set and led 3-0 in the second before the hard-hitting Belarusian roared back, winning four straight games to take a 4-3 lead.
But Sakkari reeled off the final three games and raised her arms in triumph when Sabalenka’s running forehand landed wide on the purple indoor hard courts.
“I felt like I did nothing wrong from 3-0 down,” the world No. 5 told Tennis Channel. “She started making more balls, she wasn’t missing like she was in the first set and half. So I just told myself, ‘Keep doing what you’re doing and you’ll get your chances’.”
Her second win of the round-robin stage left her on top of the Nancy Richey Group, with one match remaining, and she will qualify in top spot if she beats Jabeur in her final group game.
“It feels great, just giving myself the chance to play my next match a little bit more relaxed, and enjoy another battle. Obviously, I want to win – I still want to go undefeated. It will be a very tough match but it’s nice to feel my hard work is paying off finally,” Sakkari said.
Jabeur, who had been beaten by Sabalenka in three sets on Monday, shrugged off that loss with a spirited 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over American Jessica Pegula.
Sabalenka will pip Jabeur for a semi-final berth if she beats Pegula in her final group game.
Pegula was left ruing her failure to capitalise on a fast start in her loss to Jabeur. The 28-year-old roared through the opening set, winning six straight games after dropping the first.
“She was playing really well and really fast,” world No. 2 Jabeur said, after collecting her 47th win of the season.
“The balls were tough, very low. I know she likes to play the balls like that. And I just had to find that click to just change up the rhythm and impose my game.”
Pegula was surprised to discover that she was not yet mathematically eliminated, although it would take an unlikely combination of results to see her reach the last four.
“I’m still in? That’s good to know, I’m still alive, somehow,” she said. AFP, REUTERS
