Ottawa native Gabriela Dabrowski and her doubles partner from Brazil, Luisa Stefani, secured a spot in the women’s doubles final at the Wuhan Open tennis tournament on Saturday with a convincing 6-2, 6-1 victory over American Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Spain’s Cristina Bucșa.
Their next challenge will come from the winner of the semifinal match between Czech player Kateřina Siniaková and Australia’s Storm Hunter, facing off against the Italian duo of Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini.
Meanwhile, in the women’s singles competition, British player Sonay Kartal continued her impressive performance by defeating former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko 7-6 (9), 7-6 (5) to advance to the final. Kartal’s recent triumph over Ostapenko follows notable wins against Elina Svitolina and Jasmine Paolini.
Reflecting on her victory against the Latvian star, Kartal described it as one of the toughest matches she has ever played, emphasizing the mental strength required to overcome formidable opponents.
In the upcoming final, Kartal will face Maja Chwalinska, who secured her spot by defeating six-time major winner Iga Swiatek in an all-Polish semifinal match. Chwalinska, a former French Open finalist, will be aiming for her first career title against the 170th-ranked Kartal, who is seeking her second singles title.
Kartal, 24, who has previously held a career-high ranking of 44 and has battled back from a back injury earlier in the year, will look to continue her impressive form in the final showdown. Swiatek, on the other hand, is focused on improving her standing in the Race to the WTA Finals rankings ahead of the season-ending tournament in Indian Wells, with the former world number one currently ranked 10th in the standings.
