Angelique Kerber beat Petra Kvitova 6-4 4-6 6-2 after an entertaining match of two hours and 3 minutes to reach her second consecutive final at the Porsche Indoor Tennis Grand Prix at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart. No less than 4600 enthusiastic fans packed the Porsche Arena to celebrate the win of the 2016 Australian Open champion, who will defend her last year’s title tomorrow against the winner of the other semifinal between Laura Siegemund and Agnieszka Radwanska. Kerber will be bidding to win her second title of the year.
Kerber and Kvitova provided another three-set battle which lived up to their previous fights. It was the sixth time in their eight head-to-head matches that these two players went to the decider.
Kerber got the first break of serve at deuce in the third game of the opening set to take a 2-1 lead as Kvitova struck three consecutive double faults. Kvitova recovered from 0-40 to earn three break points for 2-2 in the fourth game but Kerber saved them.
Kerber got the double break to 15 in the fifth game to race out to 4-1. Kvitova got one break back to love with her return winner in the sixth game for 2-4.
Kvitova hit an ace to hold her serve to 30 in the ninth game for 4-5 but could not convert on her break point chances. The German served out the opening set to love as Kvitova hit a backhand slice wide.
The second set went on serve until the 10th game when Kvitova converted her third break point of the set as Kerber served to stay in the set at 5-4.
Kerber broke serve in the opening game to love and opened up a 2-0 lead with a backhand winner. Kvitova held serve before breaking back to 30 with a forehand winner in the fourth game to draw level to 2-2 .
Kerber got another break in the fifth game for 3-2 and went up a double break to race out to 5-2 aftar a wayward forehand from Kvitova.
The 2015 Stuttgart champion saved three break points in the final game when serving for the match before converting her first match point after just over two hours when Kvitova sent a forehand long. Kerber won her fourth match against Kvitova.
Kerber hit 17 winners to 14 unforced errors and converted five of her ten break points. Kvitova struck 47 winners to 33 unforced errors but made 9 unforced errors at the end of the match and converted just three of her thirteen break points.
Kerber has played in her first semifinal since her triumph at the Australian Open last January.
Kerber will take on either Pole Agnieszka Radwanska or her compatriot Laura Siegemund. It’s the first time since 1985 that two German players have reached the semifinal in the same edition of the Stuttgart tournament.
