Number 2 seed and this year’s Australian Open finalist Petra Kvitova came back from one set down to beat Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Su-Wei 3-6 6-2 6-4 at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Kvitova has reached her first final in Dubai since winning the title in 2013.
Hsieh broke serve twice in a row in the last three games from 3-3 to win the opening set 6-3.
Kvitova broke twice in the third and fifth games of the second set to open up a 4-1 lead before saving three break points in the sixth game and another chance in the eighth game to win the second set 6-2.
Both players traded breaks in the first and second games of the third set. Kvitova earned his second break in the third game to open up a 3-1 lead. Hsieh saved two break points in the fifth game to hold her serve at deuce for 2-3. Four of the final six games went to deuce, but Kvitova held her final service game at love to close out the match.
Kvitova will face either defending champion Elina Svitolina or Belinda Bencic, who upset former world number 1 Simona Halep in three sets yesterday.
“It was a tough match today. She did not give me anything for free. It was a tough first set. I am glad that I was able to come back in the second set. I did not play great at the end of the first set. I am pleased with my kind of mental focus after losing the first set, that I was calmer when I came when I came back and played from the beginning of the second set. I felt I can do that somehow. It was something weird. It’s nor really happening often to me, but I headed there, and that’s helped me a lot today to kind of feel that I can do that or I can battle to the third”, said Kvitova.
