A report from WTA Tennis.
Monica Puig advanced to her first semifinal since her historic gold medal run at Rio after coming from a set down to beat Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina.
Monica Puig advanced to her first semifinal since her historic gold medal run at the Rio Olympics last summer after fighting back to beat Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 at the Qatar Total Open.
“At our match in Indian Wells I also had match points and lost the match but against her it’s always going to be tough,” she said after the match. “We’re both up and coming and she’s such a great player so it was a good match and I loved the fight out there.”
With the match locked at a set apiece when the players were finally called off court due to rain on Thursday, Kasatkina came out of the blocks quickly, converting her fourth break point to move 3-2 ahead.
Puig saved two further break points in her next service game to keep her hopes alive before breaking back to level the match at 4-4.
A wayward stroke from Kasatkina, serving at 4-5, handed the 23-year-old a stunning comeback victory.
Victory for the Puerto Rican means she now faces either Caroline Wozniacki or Lauren Davis for a place in the final later on today. Her run in Doha already marks her best of the season so far, having suffered back-to-back exits at Brisbane before making the second round of the Australian Open, losing to Mona Barthel.
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#PicaPower … Puerto Rican pride!!!