World number two Iga Swiatek was eliminated from the WTA Finals on Thursday after Barbora Krejcikova defeated Coco Gauff to secure her spot in the semifinals at the expense of the Pole.
The Czech Wimbledon champion claimed a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Gauff to end the title defence of Swiatek, who needed Krejcikova to lose in order to progress from the group stage.
With one win and one loss under her belt entering the last day of round-robin play, Swiatek’s 6-1, 6-0 victory over alternate Daria Kasatkina did not have any bearing on her qualification chances.
The only scenario that would have led to Swiatek’s advancement to the semifinals would have been a Gauff win over Krejcikova.
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That result did not materialise though and Krejcikova punched her ticket to the semifinals of the WTA Finals for the first time – on her second singles appearance.
Krejcikova moves forward as the winner of the Orange Group and will face Zheng Qinwen in Friday’s last-four stage, with Gauff of the USA advancing as the runner-up to set up a semifinal showdown with world number one Aryna Sabalenka.
“Definitely this is a big win for me. I’m really happy with how I played and with my performance today. It was a really big match,” said Krejcikova, who saved a remarkable 11 of 12 break points against Gauff.
“Playing tomorrow again is something unimaginable before this tournament and I’m really proud of myself and I’m looking forward to the new challenges.”
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