Tennis: Fernandez beats Rakhimova to reach Tokyo final

Canada’s Leylah Fernandez reached the Tokyo final with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova on Saturday to continue her hot streak on women’s tennis’s Asian swing.

The world number 23 won her first title of the season in Singapore last month and followed that up by reaching the final of last week’s Ningbo Open in China, where she lost to world number one Elena Rybakina.

Fernandez will face either Russia’s Diana Shnaider or Slovakia’s Mia Pohankova in the Pan Pacific Open final as she looks for her seventh title on the WTA Tour.

Fernandez reached the quarter-finals when Rybakina withdrew from their match with a neck injury, a day after securing the year-end world number one ranking.

World number 66 Rakhimova was eliminated in qualifying in Tokyo but entered the main draw as a lucky loser and made it all the way to the semi-finals.

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She was attempting to reach her first final on the WTA Tour but she ran into a player in form in Fernandez, who hit nine aces.

The Canadian went a break down early in the first set but soon recovered with a break of her own before tipping the balance her way.

Rakhimova also went a break up early in the second set but Fernandez clawed her way back again and took the match in just under two hours.

AFP

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