Ons Jabeur of Tunisia advanced to her maiden WTA 1000 final with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Russian qualifier Ekaterina Alexandrova at the Madrid Open on Thursday.
Alexandrova had a 6-1 head-to-head record against eighth seed Jabeur, but the Tunisian outplayed the qualifier with flair and great court coverage. "I was getting tired of losing to her all the time. So I came here to avenge myself "In a post-match interview, Jabeur remarked.
"I feel like this tournament is a revenge tournament, every match. I'm very glad with my performance. I know she plays really well, so I tried to really impose my rhythm. I'm very happy with the level I played with today." After exchanging breaks in the first set, Jabeur improved her game to break Alexandrova at 3-2 with a lob at the net.
As the spectators rose to their feet, Jabeur let out an ecstatic roar, and the 27-year-old did not look back, breaking four times in the match to finish it in 61 minutes. In Saturday's final, she will face either Jessica Pegula of the United States or Jil Teichmann of Switzerland.
"I really hope they play for five hours and they become tired," Jabeur said with a laugh. "I'm just going to focus on myself, it's been tough losing a few finals lately. I'm going to do my best and then give it all for this one."