Iga Swiatek, the reigning champion for three consecutive years, defeated Elena Rybakina 6-2, 7-5 to advance to the Qatar Open semi-finals on Thursday.
-Meanwhile, Ekaterina Alexandrova from Russia triumphed over American sixth seed Jessica Pegula. In a rematch of last year’s final, second seed Swiatek dominated the first set, breaking Kazakhstan’s fifth seed Rybakina in her initial service game to take a 2-0 lead and broke her again to secure the set. Rybakina, who learned on Wednesday that the WTA had chosen to uphold a ban against her former coach Stefano Vukov after a probe into a possible code of conduct violation, managed to break Swiatek in the opening game of the second set. Swiatek, showcasing great intensity, fought back to equalise at 4-4 and, with Rybakina serving to push for a tiebreaker, the Pole achieved the crucial break.
“I’m extremely pleased and proud of myself because playing against Elena is always challenging,” Swiatek remarked.
At the start of the second set, I sensed that her performance had stepped up a notch. I realised I had to match that intensity to stay in the game. Rybakina entered the match with a 4-3 advantage in their previous encounters, yet it is Swiatek who will face either Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur or Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko in the next round. Pegula, a U.S. Open finalist from last year, claimed the first set; however, the in-form Alexandrova, who had previously defeated top seed and world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the second round, rallied to win 4-6 6-1 6-1.
Alexandrova, currently enjoying an eight-match winning streak, is set to play against either Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk or American Amanda Anisimova in the semi-final. “I’m really pleased with my current form,” remarked Alexandrova. “I aim to maintain this momentum for as long as possible, regardless of the circumstances.”
