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Jelena Ostapenko improved to 5-0 against No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek with a 6-3, 6-1 semifinal rout Friday against the three-time defending Qatar TotalEnergies Open champion.
Ostapenko halted Swiatek's 15-match winning streak in Doha and advanced to her 17th WTA Tour final, her first at the WTA 1000 level since Miami in 2018.
The 27-year-old Latvian has not dropped a set all week and will face another unseeded player, American Amanda Anisimova, in Saturday's final. Anisimova, 23, advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Ostapenko's decisive 70-minute victory equaled the fewest games Poland's Swiatek has won in a match since a 6-0, 6-2 loss in the United Kingdom in Birmingham in 2019 -- to Ostapenko.
"I was pretty confident that I would beat her, because we've played a lot of matches and I know how to play against her," Ostapenko said during her on-court interview. "I was more focusing on myself and what I had to do. I'm happy with the way I'm handling my emotions this week."
Ostapenko broke the five-time Grand Slam winner's serve five times, with Swiatek winning only 48 percent (14 of 29) of her first-service points. Ostapenko dropped her only service game on a double fault while leading 4-0 in the second set.
"Obviously I was preparing for the match, and I pretty much knew what to expect from her," Ostapenko said afterward. "I don't know, sometimes I know where the ball's coming, but sometimes I'm just going with my feelings and my instincts, so that helps me."
Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champ, is seeking her first title since her victory in Linz, Austria, last February.
Ostapenko won her only previous encounter with Anisimova, a three-setter in the second round at Doha in 2022.
Anisimova saved nine of 10 break points in the 90-minute win against Alexandrova to reach her second career WTA 1000 final. She lost in three sets to Jessica Pegula at the Canadian Open last August.
"I've been putting in a lot of work ... and I think it's really showing up here," Anisimova said after her semifinal win. "I'm happy with the results and the performances I was able to put out here this week.
"Playing against so many tough competitors, getting all of these matches under my belt, has been really great."
A two-time WTA Tour winner, Anisimova is looking to become the first American champion in Doha since Monica Seles in 2002.
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Vancouver Canucks Top Prospect Braeden Cootes Injured at World Junior Summer Showcase
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Lakers insider updates LeBron James' immediate future
LeBron James wasn't present at Luka Doncic's contract extension news conference. That doesn't necessarily mean anything, and he's more than entitled to some time off the clock just like everybody else. However, given all that has been said about his future with the Los Angeles Lakers, it didn't take long before people speculated whether there was something else going on. The Athletic's Dan Woike reports that there's nothing to it. "James has not asked for a trade or a contract buyout, team and league sources have said. He’ll turn 41 on Dec. 30," wrote Woike. James' agent and friend, Rich Paul, also made it loud and clear that he hasn't even talked about potentially leaving the Lakers, and while he still doesn't know if he'll re-sign with them or will continue to play beyond this season, that's a bridge they'll cross when they get there. Lakers GM Rob Pelinka also shut down rumors by pointing out that he's been in constant talks with James and his camp. “Yeah, so all the interactions we’ve had with LeBron and his camp, Rich (Paul) in particular, have been positive and supportive. So very professional and Rich has been great,” Pelinka said. “The dialogue with him has been open and constant.” The Lakers are doing the right thing by pivoting towards their younger star. Whether this will be the end of the line for James in Southern California remains to be seen.
Steelers Trade Package for Micah Parsons Predicted
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Packers’ Matt LaFleur’s Bold Three-Word Message on Jordan Love
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