French qualifier Alize Cornet stormed into the final of the Rome International on Saturday, dropping her first set of the tournament to Russian sixth seed Anna Chakvetadze before winning 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The 18-year-old will face defending champion Jelena Jankovic after the Serbian fourth seed booked her place in the final without hitting a ball when Maria Sharapova pulled out of their scheduled semi-final with a calf injury.
If Cornet wins, it will be her third top 10 scalp of the tournament.
PHOTO: AFP
“It’s my second top ten in two days, and why not a third one tomorrow?” said Cornet, ranked 34th in the world.
The teenager from Nice was to have faced sixth-ranked Serena Williams in the quarter-final, but the American pulled out with a back injury.
In Saturday’s semi-final, Cornet recovered from a set down and 0-3 in the second before the tables began to turn as the Moscovite world No. 8 unleashed a string of errors including two double faults.
Cornet said she found her fighting spirit after contemplating losing 6-3, 6-0.
“I was afraid of being ridiculous,” said Cornet, who won the junior tournament at Roland Garros last year.
The Russian’s errors continued as Cornet, helped by a solid serve, got back into the match, winning the second set at 6-4 before going on to win the third 6-3.
Cornet met Jankovic at the US Open last year, when she lost to her in the second round while winning a set.
Sharapova, who will become the World No. 1 after Justine Henin’s retirement, had a marathon match with Switzerland’s Patty Schnyder at the claycourt tournament.
“In part it’s my fault for making some of the matches longer than they should be,” Sharapova said.
But the Russian also complained of tough playing conditions in Rome.
“For some people, like me, I had two night matches, two late nights ... It’s a pretty short turnaround to be able to compete,” she said.
TAIWANESE EXITS: Fellow Australian Christopher O’Connell joined Tristan Schoolkate as a winner following his 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Tseng Hsin-chun Australian qualifier Tristan Schoolkate on Monday dispatched rising Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 at the ATP Toronto Masters, ensuring a breakthrough into the world top 100. The 24-year-old from Perth moved to 98th in the ongoing live rankings as he claimed his biggest career victory by knocking out the ATP NextGen champion from November last year. Schoolkate, son of a tennis coach, won his first match over a top-50 opponent on his sixth attempt as he ousted the world No. 49 teenager from Brazil. The qualifier played a quarter-final this month in Los Cabos and won through qualifying for his
Top seeds Alexander Zverev of Germany and American Coco Gauff on Tuesday advanced to the third round of the Canadian Open after both players were pushed hard by their opponents. World No. 3 Zverev, playing in his first match since his first-round loss at Wimbledon, was far from his best, but emerged with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win over Adam Walton under the lights in Toronto. Momentum shifted firmly in Zverev’s favor when he won a 52-shot rally in the first set tiebreak and he sealed the win on a double fault by the Australian in the second set. “It was a very
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
RSS