Maria Sakkari and Aryna Sabalenka have set the semi-finals in the bottom half of the draw at Indian Wells. On Wednesday, Sakkari and Sabalenka won their respective quarter-finals. Sakkari, the seventh seed from Greece overcame a potent threat from Petra Kvitova in their quarter-final.
The Czech, seeded 15th raced away to lead by a set and break before her higher-ranked opponent bounced back in the match. Sakkari posted a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 win after two hours and 15 minutes of play. Kvitova won 75% of her first-serve points in the first set to Sakkari’s 44%.
While she started the second set just as strong, Sakkari finished the set by winning 70% of her first-serve points to Kvitova’s 63%. The two-time Wimbledon champion, however, won 60% of her second-serve points and 69% of points on return on the world no.
7’s second serve. In the final set, although Kvitova’s level didn’t dip much, Sakkari’s went up substantially. The 27-year-old won 93% of her first-serve points and 82% points on return on Kvitova’s second serve.
She also saved both break points she faced while converting two break points of her own. For the match, Sakkari had eight fewer winners than Kvitova’s 29 and 10 unforced errors fewer than the latter’s 52.
