Petra Kvitova on Saturday came from a set down to beat world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki to record her 12th successive victory and advance to the Qatar Open final.
The Czech star won 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 to set up a final against Spain’s Garbine Muguruza.
It was to be Kvitova’s second final this month, after already winning in St Petersburg, Russia.
Photo: Reuters
Currently the world No. 21, the final in Doha also underlines her push to get back to the elite of the women’s game following a horrific knife attack at her home 14 months ago.
If she won the final, Kvitova could go back into the top 10 in the rankings.
“I don’t know what happened. I just came to play, and I was crazy a little bit in my mind and I was playing it everywhere,” a jubilant Kvitova said about her comeback.
She hit 50 winners, many from her powerful forehand, and her victory was the third she has recorded this week in Doha over a member of the world’s top 10.
Her winning streak is now the second longest of her career and she is only two victories short of equaling her record set seven years ago.
After losing the first set it looked like she was poised to become another victim of Wozniacki, the Australian Open champion who has enjoyed a blistering start to the season, but Kvitova forced a tiebreak in the second set after her opponent served for the match, then won six straight points to force a third set.
“In the tiebreak when I was down 3-1, I was just really angry with myself, so I just tried to hit some winners. That’s how that ended,” she said.
Muguruza had a day’s rest on Saturday, receiving a bye in the semi-final after opponent Simona Halep withdrew because of injury.
Kvitova said that would not be an advantage.
“I think tomorrow will be another day, another match,” the Czech said.
Doha would have been Wozniacki’s third final this season after Auckland and the Australian Open.
“Definitely disappointing when I had a chance to serve it out twice in that second set,” Wozniacki said. “She played aggressively and I made a few unforced errors, and I felt that was frustrating because I had my opportunities there.”
However, the Dane added that she was pleased with the her week’s work, which saw her become only the fourth woman in history to earn US$30 million in prize money.
“I think we played both really well and I can take a lot out of that,” she said. “I just need to live and learn, and try not to make the same mistake when I play her next time.”
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB