Kvitova and Murguruza progress to Qatar Total Open final in contrasting styles
Czech Petra Kvitova and Spaniard Garbine Muguruza progressed to the final of the Qatar Total Open in contrasting styles at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex yesterday.
Kvitova made a shaky start but found her attacking verve midway through the match to beat World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki 3-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 to set up the final with Muguruza, reported Reuters.
On the other hand, Muguruza did not have to take to the court for her semifinal as her opponent, No. 2 seed Simona Halep, pulled out citing a foot injury, reported Gulf Times.
Kvitova, 27, who lost the opening set tamely and looked in some trouble while trailing 3-1 in the second, fought back in style to clinch her fourth straight victory over the Dane in two hours and 35 minutes.
“I don’t know what happened. I was a little crazy in my mind and I was playing everywhere and not to the court,” twice Wimbledon champion Kvitova said in a courtside interview.
“I tried to calm myself down a little bit in the second set. Even though I was losing, I was trying to get back somehow. When I was down 3-1, I was really angry with myself and I tried to hit some winners,” added Kvitova, who made 59 unforced errors including 11 double faults, but also hit 50 winners.
Having dragged the second set into a tiebreaker which she edged, the battling Czech quickly switched gears and attacked her opponent relentlessly to prevail in the decider.
Meanwhile, Gabriela Dabrowski and Jelena Ostapenko made it to their maiden final as a pair in the doubles. The Canadian-Latvian duo scored a comfortable 6-3, 6-3 win over fellow unseeded pair, Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of Czech Republic, in the semifinals.
They will meet Slovenia’s Andreja Klepac and Spain’s Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez in the final. In the semifinal, the duo beat Australia’s Monique Adamczak and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-7, 6-3, 12-10.
