GUADALAJARA, Mexico – On Friday night, sixth-ranked Maria Sakkari crushed Veronika Kudermetova of Russia 6-1, 5-7, 6-4 to progress to the semifinals of the Guadalajara Open 1000 as well as reach the final the WTA Finals.
Sakkari, seeded fourth, will face Marie Bouzkova, who progressed after Russian Anna Kalinskaya retired with a 5-2 lead in the first set.
For the second year running, Sakkari will compete in the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas. Last year, the 27-year-old Greek reached the semifinals in Guadalajara.
“Correct me if I’m totally incorrect, but I think doing it two times in a row is a lot more difficult than doing it once.” “That’s what I’m most proud of,” Sakkari explained. “As bad as my season was after Indian Wells, I still gave myself this chance to close the year strong.” “I think just getting to Fort Worth is the perfect gift I can give myself.”
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and Ons Jabeur earned their spots at the US Open, as well as Jessica Pegula arrived in Mexico upon punching her ticket in San Diego last week.
Coco Gauff, Caroline Garcia, Aryna Sabalenka, and Daria Kasatkina were among those who met the criteria.
Gauff, who earned her spot with two victories this week,lost to Viktoria Azarenka 7-6 (2), 4-6, 6-3.
Azarenka, 33, of Belarus, managed to reach her first semifinal since last October, when she reached the final at Indian Wells.
“She’s a young player, but she’s already accumulated a lot of tour experience.” “I enjoy watching Coco play,” said Azarenka. “I think she’s going to do really well in sports.” “I think she just requires a little bit more to take it one step forward.”
Azarenka, a former No. 1 player in the world, will face third-seeded Pegula, who defeated former US Open champion Sloane Stephens 6-2, 6-2.
Pegula now has 37 wins in WTA 1000 tournaments, her most since 2021. She ended a tie with Swiatek (36).
“I saw the statistic that I have had the most wins in the last two years,” Pegula, who is experiencing a breakout season, said. “It’s fantastic. When I was more youthful, I never imagined myself being able to string two victories together. It’ll be a memorable statistic for the remainder of my career.”
