Iga Swiatek moved one step closer to completing a rare Doha-Dubai double with a 6-3, 6-2 quarter-final win over Chinese sixth seed Zheng Qinwen on Thursday in the UAE. The world number one, who won the trophy in Doha for the third time in a row last Saturday, extended her unbeaten streak to seven matches and hopes to become the first woman since 2007, and only the third overall, to win both Gulf tournaments in the same season.
Swiatek came up big in their sixth meeting in 20 months, improving to a perfect 6-0 lifetime record against Zheng.
“I’m pleased that I played well, stuck to my tactics, and was relatively solid. For sure, I feel better and better every day here,” said Swiatek, who was a finalist in Dubai a year ago.
The Polish top seed will now face Russian world number 40 Anna Kalinskaya, who defeated world number three and reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Swiatek won the first set with an early break of serve, outlasting Zheng in some key powerful baseline battles to take the lead in 42 minutes.
Swiatek had to save a break point in game four before capitalizing on Zheng’s serve, and she didn’t lose another game, sprinting to victory in one hour and 26 minutes.
The four-time Grand Slam champion will meet Kalinskaya for the first time on Friday.
Kalinskaya, who reached her first major quarterfinal at the Australian Open last month, defeated Gauff in a comeback match to claim her sixth top-10 victory.
The 25-year-old is only the fourth qualifier to reach the WTA semifinals in Dubai.
Kalinskaya required medical attention for an upper back issue late in the first set, but she recovered in the second and cruised in the third to defeat Gauff in two hours and 17 minutes.
Six match points saved
“I’m very pleased with my game here,” said Kalinskaya, who will play her first WTA 1000 semi-final.
“She’s a great player and a great fighter. I could feel the tension until the very end, so I needed to stay focused and calm, doing my best while remaining aggressive.
Meanwhile, world number four Elena Rybakina withdrew from her scheduled quarterfinal due to a gastrointestinal illness.
Rybakina won the title in Abu Dhabi, advanced to the final in Doha, and reached the last eight in Dubai, totaling 10 wins from 11 matches played in three cities over 14 days in the Middle East.
The former Wimbledon champion also won a trophy in Brisbane last month and leads the tour with 17 wins and only three losses in 2024.
Rybakina’s withdrawal from the tournament advances Italian Jasmine Paolini to the semi-finals of a WTA 1000 event for the first time in her career.
Paolini will next face Romanian Sorana Cirstea, who called it the “biggest comeback of my career” after rallying from 2-6, 1-5 down and saving six match points to defeat reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova 2-6, 7-6 (7/1) 6-2.
The seventh-seeded Vondrousova served for the match three times in the second set but was unable to close the gap, allowing Cirstea to rally and advance to her third WTA 1000 semi-final.
At 33 years old, the 22nd-ranked Romanian is the oldest semi-finalist in the history of the WTA Dubai tournament.
“I’ll be honest, I didn’t expect to win this one after being down a set and 5-1,” admitted Cirstea, who now has two top-10 victories in 2024.
“I looked over at the clock and noticed there was only one hour of play. I was receiving fantastic support. I said, ‘Okay, let’s try to win one more game for the public; make it a little longer’. I believe that thing relieved some of my stress.”
