Taiwanese sisters Chan Hao-ching and Chan Yung-jan came up against familiar foes in the doubles quarter-finals at the WTA Finals in Singapore yesterday and the match ended in a depressingly familiar outcome.
It was always going to be a tough ask for the Taiwanese duo to advance to the semi-finals past second seeds Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza in their opponents’ first match since splitting up as a pairing in August, with the Chan sisters falling to a 7-6 (12/10), 7-5 defeat in five minutes short of two hours.
“It’s great to be back in Singapore,” Mirza was quoted as saying on the WTA Web site after the match. “It’s also great to be back with Martina, and it’s good to get that win.”
Photo: CNA
However, the Chan sisters, who traveled to Singapore after winning their third title of the season in Hong Kong, pushed the Swiss-Indian duo all the way, with each pairing creating three match points in a tense first-set tiebreak, before the second seeds finally converted.
“They’re a really tough team and we’ve played them a bunch of times, but it was so important to win that first set,” Mirza said.
The Chans then battled back from a 2-4 deficit in the second set by winning three consecutive games, but Hingis and Mirza rallied to win the next three and advance to a semi-final against either Russian fourth seeds Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina or Czech duo Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, who were due to play their quarter-finals late last night.
“The momentum was in our favor after [winning the first set], but it was so tough and we had to stay mentally tough. I’m glad we got through,” Mirza said.
“Our bond is what made us so strong, to win those tough points in the past,” Hingis was quoted as saying on the WTA Web site. “No matter how you play, or what’s happening on the court, you have to work through the tough moments and get the momentum going. It’s been two months since we were last on court together and it was great to be back out there with Sania.”
The victory kept Mirza on track to retain her world No. 1 doubles ranking through the end of the season.
In the singles, Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova ended up in first place in the White Group despite losing to Spain’s Garbine Muguruza 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 yesterday.
Kuznetsova, who had already qualified for the semi-finals, finished the round robin with a 2-1 record. Muguruza had already been eliminated and ended up with a 1-2 record.
Kuznetsova was the last player to qualify for the season-ending tournament. She will play Dominika Cibulkova (1-2) in the semi-finals today.
The second semi-final spot from the group was to be decided late last night when defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska (1-1) played Karolina Pliskova (1-1). The winner of that match faces top-ranked Angelique Kerber in the semi-finals.
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