Riske upsets Kvitova to reach first WTA Premier final in Wuhan
The American ousted the two-time Wuhan champion, 7-5, 7-5, and will take on Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday.
Alison Riske is enjoying the week of a lifetime in Wuhan, ousting two-time Wuhan champion Petra Kvitova 7-5, 7-5 on Friday to reach the final.
Unseeded, Riske has beaten three seeds this week: No. 8 Wang Qiang, No. 3 Elina Svitolina and No. 5 Kvitova. To make it even more impressive, the 29-year-old took them all in succession and in straight sets. She lost just four games to Svitolina on Thursday.
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The world No. 35 will take on Aryna Sabalenka in the biggest final of her career. Sabalenka got past world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty 7-5, 6-4 to reach her second successive Wuhan final. The Belarusian won the WTA Premier title last year over Anett Kontaveit.
Riske has been having a stellar 2019 season, reaching the quarterfinals of Wimbledon, the final of Shenzhen and picking up two titles, s’-Hertogenbosch (a WTA International) and Surbiton (an ITF 100K).
Sabalenka, currently ranked No. 14, beat Riske in the Shenzhen final for her sole crown of 2019; she leads their head-to-head record 2-0.
