In a highly anticipated match at the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Singapore Open on Saturday, second-seeded Elise Mertens of Belgium defeated China's No. 4 seed Wang Xinyu with a straight-set victory of 6-3, 6-4, advancing to the final.
The Singapore Open marks the fourth tournament Wang has competed in over the past month. In a grueling quarterfinal that lasted over three hours on Friday, Wang made an impressive comeback to eliminate Switzerland's Jil Teichmann with scores of 6(5)-7, 7-6(4), 6-4. However, the intense schedule appeared to take a toll on Wang's endurance, affecting her mobility on the court during the semifinal.
Despite a strong start in the second set where she led 4-3, Wang conceded three consecutive games to Mertens, ultimately losing the match. This marks Wang's sixth attempt falling short of reaching a WTA Tour final.
Elise Mertens will face Ann Li of the United States in the final. Li advanced after her semifinal opponent, Russia's Anna Kalinskaya, retired due to an injury early in the second set. Li secured the first set 7-6(2) and was leading 1-0 in the second when the match concluded.
On a positive note, Wang Xinyu found success in the women's doubles. Teaming up with fellow Chinese player Zheng Saisai, the pair triumphed over Japan's Nao Hibino and Georgia's Oksana Kalashnikova with a convincing 6-3, 6-2 victory in the semifinal.
Wang and Zheng will compete for the doubles title against the duo of Desirae Krawczyk from the United States and Giuliana Olmos of Mexico. Krawczyk and Olmos progressed to the final after the British pair of Maia Lumsden and Harriet Dart retired from their semifinal match.
