Swiatek downs Rybakina to reach semis; Ostapenko beats Jabeur

Doha: Iga Swiatek yesterday extended her winning run to 15 matches in Doha as she kept her bid for a fourth title in a row alive with a hard fought 6...

Doha: Iga Swiatek yesterday extended her winning run to 15 matches in Doha as she kept her bid for a fourth title in a row alive with a hard-fought 6-2, 7-5 victory over Elena Rybakina to reach the Qatar TotalEnergies Open semi-finals.

The Polish World No. 2 rallied from 2-4 in the second set and saved two break points at 4-4 to overcome the Kazakh seventh seed in a rematch of last year’s final, wrapping up the win in one hour and 36 minutes.

Swiatek’s win also extended head-to-head record with the Rybakina to 4-4.

“I’m super happy, super proud of myself,” Swiatek said after her win which also marked her 100th win at WTA 1000 level.

“Playing against Elena is never easy. At the beginning of the second set, she increased her level, so I needed to do that too. I’m really happy, especially in the last game, to break her because with her serve, it’s tough,” Swiatek said.