Katie Boulter had many reasons to be apprehensive about her form in the final stretch of an arduous first full season at tennis’s highest levels. However, even as she travelled from city to city struggling to re-establish herself, the British No 1 continued to work hard each day, remaining optimistic and giving herself opportunities to find her game again.
In her last individual tournament of the season, Boulter has been rewarded for her resilience and grit. She pieced together another brilliant performance on Saturday in a quality tussle against Yuan Yue of China, eventually closing out a 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 win to reach the Hong Kong Open final.
“That was an unbelievable match,” said Boulter, the second seed. “She makes it so hard to win any point in the match. I just had to keep believing, keep fighting and try and find a way through. I’m a little grumpy today and I’m a little tired but I managed to find a way and I’m happy with that.”
Only 18 months ago Boulter was still flailing outside the world’s top 150 and it was unclear what direction her career was moving in. It has been impressive enough to see the 28-year-old embed herself inside the top 30 this year, but her rise has not finished. Boulter will climb six places to a career high of No 23 next week, shattering her previous best ranking of No 27.
Against Yuan, who is ranked No 45 and seeded sixth, Boulter started the match serving excellently and dominating from inside the baseline with her forehand as she established a quick 6-2, 3-1 lead. However, Yuan fought hard and made the contest increasingly physical as she wrested enough of the initiative back from a tentative Boulter to force a final set. After losing her way in set two, Boulter steadied herself well, taking control of the baseline again and playing a brilliant final set to close out a significant win.
While she may lack the consistency of some players around her in the rankings, Boulter has shown that when she builds momentum and confidence in a tournament, she is extremely difficult to stop. Having already claimed titles in San Diego, a WTA 500 event, and Nottingham, Boulter will attempt to win her third event of the season on Sunday from only four semi-final runs in total, an incredibly efficient conversion rate. She is 3-0 in career WTA finals.
The final will undoubtedly provide Boulter with her most difficult test as she faces Diana Shnaider, the world No 14 and top seed, who at 20 is one of the most talented young players in the game. “It’s going to be a really high-quality match,” Boulter said. “I wanted to finish my year on a career high, which is why today meant so much to me. I’ve done that so I’ve got nothing to lose tomorrow. I’m just going to swing free and enjoy it for me.”
Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, opened the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a convincing 6-3, 6-4 win over the Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen. Sabalenka is in the best form of her career after winning recent titles at the US Open, Cincinnati and Wuhan. The 26 year-old is now on a six-match winning streak and she has won 21 of her last 22 matches.
As she seeks her first WTA Finals title, Sabalenka is attempting to finish the season as No 1 ahead of Iga Swiatek for the first time in her career, which she would confirm by winning all three group-stage matches. Later on, Jasmine Paolini, the fourth seed, edged past the fifth seed, Elena Rybakina, 7-6 (5), 6-4 on her WTA Finals debut. Swiatek will open her tournament on Sunday today against Barbora Krejcikova, the Wimbledon champion, in her first match since splitting with her coach Tomasz Wiktorowski and hiring Wim Fisette, the former coach of Naomi Osaka. Coco Gauff faces Jessica Pegula in the second match.
At the Paris Masters, home favourite Ugo Humbert will face the third seed, Alexander Zverev, in his first Masters 1000 final after closing out Karen Khachanov 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-3. Earlier, Zverev defeated Holger Rune 6-3, 7-6 (4).
