Sports
CAROLINE Garcia produced a dominant performance to overcome Maria Sakkari 6-3 6-2 in the last four of the WTA Finals in Fort Worth on Sunday.
Garcia had emerged as the victor of a topsy-turvy tussle with Daria Kasatkina on Saturday.
But this time she enjoyed a far more routine outing as she sealed her first final appearance at the competition.
Sakkari had cruised through the Nancy Richey Group with three straight-sets victories.
But she fell some way short of those lofty standards as she failed to force a single break-point in the opener.
Garcia took 80 per cent of points on her first serve in the opening set, breaking in the fourth game and dictating proceedings from the baseline in impressive fashion.
The match resembled something of a procession after Garcia claimed consecutive breaks to seize the initiative in the second set.
The French Open champion sealed the victory when Sakkari’s weak return clipped the net.
Garcia has now won seven matches against top-10 opponents in 2022, becoming the first French player to post seven such victories in a calendar year since Amelie Mauresmo in 2009.
The world number six is also the first player to reach the title match at the WTA Finals after turning 29 years old since Venus Williams did so in 2017.
She will now bid to cap a tremendous year with victory over either Iga Swiatek or Aryna Sabalenka.(dpa/NAN)
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