Belarussian qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich has set up a showdown with top seed Irina-Camelia Begu in the final of the Korean Open.
The world No.136 recovered from a set down to beat second seed Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 3-6, 6-3, 6-3. Playing a player ranked over 100 places above her in the WTA rankings, Sasnovich got off to a poor start as she was broken in her first three service games of the match before finally getting a game on her serve in the 8th game as she dropped the opening set.
Her service dramatically improved during the second set. Her first serve in percentage increased from 46% to 56% and her first service points won nearly tripled from 36% to 93%. The sudden turnaround lead to a dramatic change in the match momentum as Schmiedlova’s quest to her fourth WTA final of 2015 became less of a reality. The Belarusian broke in the fourth game of the second set to open a 3-1 lead. The second seed was unable to find a solution to the sudden consistency in her opponent’s service as Sasnovich took the match into a third set.
Sasnovich started strongly in the final set by breaking Schmiedlova to love before losing her own serve to love in the following game. She pounced once again at 2-2 by breaking for the fifth time in the match to gradually open up a 4-2 lead. The second seed pushed the 21-year-old throughout the final set and had a break point chance to level the deciding set but failed to convert the opportunity. Sasnovich took the win by breaking her higher ranked rival for the sixth time in the match.
The win takes Sasnovich into her first WTA final where she will face Romanian top seed Irina-Camelia Begu. Speaking shortly after her semifinal triumph, the Belarusian admitted that she didn’t produced her best tennis, but she is looking forward to her maiden final.
“I wasn’t serving really well today, and I wasn’t playing my best tennis, but I was concentrated. I really wanted to win the match,” Sasnovich said.
“I just kept trying to find some way to win today.
“It’s really exciting for me to be in my first WTA final — it’s going to be a really nice day for me tomorrow (Sunday).“.
Top seed Begu booked her place in the final after crushing 8th seed Alison Van Uytvanck 6-0,6-2. During the seventy-two minute encounter, Begu won 68% of her service points and saved 4/4 break points. Despite the one-sided scoreline the Romanian could only convert 38% of her break points (5/13). If Begu beats Sasnovich in the final, she will claim her first WTA title since 2012.
The final will be the first meeting between the two players. Begu is currently ranked 107 places higher than Sasnovich at 29th in the world.
