DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Hindi na nakaporma si top-seeded Angelique Kerber sa pananakit ng tuhod para maitakas ni No.7 Elina Svitolina ang 6-3, 7-6 (3) panalo sa semifinal ng Dubai Tennis Championships nitong Biyernes (Sabado sa Manila).
Makukuha si Kerber ang world No. 1 ranking sakaling manalo dito.
“I’m not thinking about this,” pahayag ni Kerber. “For me it’s really important to be healthy.”
“I don’t know what’s with my knee now, but I feel pain a little bit,” pahayag ng German star player. “At the end, I tried my best. This is how I am.”
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Ito ang ikatlong torneo na ginapi ni Svitolina si Kerber. Umusad siya sa championship match kontra 10th-seeded Caroline Wozniacki ng Denmark, nagwagi kay Latvian Anastasija Sevastova, 6-3, 6-4.
Bunsod nito, nahila ni Svitolina ang winning streak sa 11 laro. Nagwagi siya sa Taiwan Open nitong Enero.
Target naman ni Wozniacki, nabigo sa Doha tournament sa nakalipas na linggo, ang ika-26 career title.
“Very happy how I have managed to get through these two weeks, because it’s been very tiring mentally. The fact that I have just been staying in there and keep grinding, I’m kind of proud of that,” aniya.
Ito ang unang pagkakataon na nakapagtala siya ng back-to-back finals mula noong 2014 U.S. Open at Tokyo tournament, na kapwa siya nabigo.
