Kartal reaches Wuhan final as dream week continues

Sonay Kartal's dream week continued as she beat former Grand Slam champion Jelena Ostapenko at the Wuhan Open to reach the biggest final of her career.

British number five Kartal is playing in only her third event since returning from a six-month absence with a back injury, but she now stands one more victory away from a WTA 1,000 title - one of the most prestigious prizes outside of the Grand Slams.

The 24-year-old's composure helped her secure a 7-6 (11-9) 7-6 (7-5) victory in a pulsating semi-final against Latvia's Ostapenko.

Kartal trailed 4-1 in both sets but remained level-headed and took advantage when 34th-ranked Ostapenko stuttered in high-pressure moments.

Remarkably, Kartal survived three set points in the first set, and three more set points in the second, to secure a victory which will long live in the memory.

"That was probably one of the toughest matches I've ever played," said Kartal.

"At times she is unplayable and you have to ride that wave. Mentally, this is one of the best performances of my career."

The world number 170 is the lowest-ranked player to reach a WTA 1,000 final since the format was introduced in 1990.

Kartal, who was ranked 54th immediately before her long lay-off, will play either six-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek or French Open finalist Maja Chwalinska in Sunday's final.

Reaching the final means Kartal, who has been as high as 44th in the world, will return to the world's top 50 and become Britain's number one player when the next rankings are released on Monday.

Kartal enjoys 'best week of career' after diving into deep end

Kartal keeps calm and carries on

A difficult season for Kartal is ending on a euphoric high which even she did not see coming.

Coming back after such a long absence can often require time and patience as a player's game slowly returns, but Kartal has been able to produce a level which even she is pleasantly surprised to be reaching so soon.

After making her comeback when playing for Great Britain at the BJK Cup little over three weeks ago, Kartal earned a couple of confidence-boosting wins at the Beijing Open and has carried that momentum into Wuhan.

With consistent hitting from the baseline, supreme athleticism and tenacity, Kartal moved into the last four with notable wins over Tokyo Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, 2024 Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini and four-time major semi-finalist Elina Svitolina.

Ostapenko, a heavy hitter who can hammer countless winners but also be extremely erratic, presented Kartal with a very different challenge to those opponents.

At the start of the biggest match of her career, it looked ominous for Kartal.

Ostapenko stepped in to hammer away a pair of backhand winners off second serves in the first two points of the match, applying early pressure which led to an immediate break of Kartal's serve.

The early advantage allowed former world number five Ostapenko to play freely - serving big and striking ferociously - leaving Kartal unable to impose her game as she trailed by a double break at 4-1.

But Ostapenko's tendency to self-combust allowed Kartal to turn around a set which became increasingly dramatic.

Kartal clawed one of the breaks back as Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open winner, became wayward from the baseline, before the Latvian steadied herself - pummelling more aces and winners - to move a hold away from the opening set.

However, Ostapenko became agitated as she twice failed to serve out the opening set at 5-4 and 6-5 - and Kartal took advantage in a pulsating tie-break.

An equally dramatic second set followed a similar pattern, ending in the same outcome.

Kartal had to survive a barrage from the other side of the net at times - Ostapenko finishing with 50 winners and nine aces - but the Briton's ability to keep her emotions on a more even keel again proved crucial.

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