WTA Miami: Ashleigh Barty beats Anett Kontaveit and rain to reach final
The 22-year-old Aussie and the newly-promoted top-10 star Ashleigh Barty is through to her seventh and the biggest WTA final at Hard Rock Stadium, ousting the 21st seed Anett Kontaveit 6-3, 6-3 in an hour and 17 minutes to continue her fantastic run in 2019. Five years ago at Wimbledon, Kontaveit prevailed in three sets but she stood no chance today in the rain-interrupted encounter, losing half of the points on serve and suffering five breaks from nine opportunities offered to Barty. The Aussie dominated with her first serve, having the upper hand in the crucial moments to save five out of seven break points and mount the pressure on her rival all the time.
Ashleigh had 13 winners and 19 unforced errors, nothing spectacular but far better than Anett's 11-33 ratio, taming her shots more efficiently to march towards the finish line and secure the place in the final. They traded breaks in games two and three and had to stop the clash after the fourth game, with rain causing a lot of troubles to both the players and organizers. Once they returned, Ashleigh had a clear advantage on the court, rattling off four straight games to claim the opener 6-3. She broke Kontaveit in game seven when the Estonian netted a forehand and the set was in Barty's hands with a break at love in game nine following a double fault from the lower-ranked player.
Ashleigh wasted two game points in the third game of the second set, giving serve away after a forehand error and falling 3-1 behind before she shifted into a higher gear to claim the remaining five games and seal the deal in straight sets. Kontaveit lost the advantage after another forehand mistake in game six and got broken again at 3-4, you guess, when her forehand landed long. Serving for the victory, Ashleigh wrapped the things up with an ace to move over the top and advance into the final.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2uuJIVE
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