KONTA IS FIRST BRITISH WOMAN IN TOP 10 IN 32 YEARS
Murray and Dimitrov showdown for men’s crown in China Open
BEIJING: Johanna Konta became the first British woman to make the top 10 world rankings in 32 years after defeating Madison Keys in three sets in the semi-finals of the China Open.
In the men’s event, top-seeded Andy Murray dismissed David Ferrer in straight sets yesterday and plays Grigor Dimitrov in today’s final.
The 11th-seeded Konta beat eighth-seeded Keys 7-6 (7-1), 4-6, 6-4 after 2 hours and 35 minutes under clear skies. Keys struggled on her second service, winning only 37% of the points.
Currently ranked 14th, Konta will break into the top 10 of the next WTA rankings – the first British woman to do so since Jo Durie in 1984. She also moves into the top eight of the Road to Singapore race.
The 25-year-old Konta faces third-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska in today’s final, after she beat Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 7-6 (7-3), 6-3 in the semis.
Svitolina –- who upset world number one Angelique Kerber in the third round –- recovered from 3-0 in the second set but was unable to close the gap on the 2011 China Open champion.
Murray beat fifth-seeded Ferrer 6-2, 6-3, while Dimitrov had a walkover against third-seeded Milos Raonic, who injured his ankle during his quarter-final victory against Pablo Carreno Busta on Friday.
The 29-year-old Murray, who is yet to drop a set this week, sealed victory in one hour 31 minutes, his seventh successive win over fifth seed Ferrer.
The big-serving Raonic was forced to play twice on Friday, beating Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri and Pablo Carreno Busta to advance to the last four and he sustained the injury during the win over the Spaniard.
“Yesterday during my second match in the evening, I rolled over my ankle, obviously caused it some level of a sprain,” the Canadian told the ATP website.
“I did a test this morning, which showed I had a partial tear on the outside of my ankle. I was told to give it a try. I tried to warm up just before the match like I would normally, and I was unable to play.”
Murray, through to the China Open final for the first time, has enjoyed one of the best years of his career, winning Wimbledon and the Olympic gold medal.
World number one Novak Djokovic pulled out of the tournament due to injury. — Agencies