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Anna Blinkova upset Anhelina Kalinina, the second seed at the Transylvania Open in the quarter-finals on Friday. Blinkova came from a set down to win 6-7(7), 6-1, 6-3 after two hours and 37 minutes of play. Blinkova won 70% of her first-serve points and went on to save six of the eight break points she faced.
She also converted six break points on Kalinina’s serve. Blinkova also won 57% points on return on Kalinina’s second serve. This is the first semi-final Blinkova’s reached this year. In fact, this is the first time in almost four years, since 2019, that Blinkova’s reached the semi-finals of a WTA tournament.
For a chance to reach a final of a WTA tournament for the first time in her career, Blinkova will next play Anastasia Potapova.
Transylvania Open: Xiyu Wang surges
The fourth-seeded Potapova defeated eighth seed Anna Bondar in their quarter-final meeting.
Potapova won 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 after two hours and 27 minutes. Potapova had eight double faults to Bondar’s one but she still won 77% of her first-serve points. While she won only 34% of her second-serve points, Potapova still managed to win 57% points on return on the Hungarian’s second serve.
The 21-year-old saved 14 of the 17 break points she faced and converted seven of the 12 break points on Bondar’s serve. Jasmine Paolini advanced to the semi-finals in the top half in the Romanian tournament. Paolini won against Jule Niemeier 7-5, 7-5 after an hour and 52 minutes of play.
The Italian will take on Xiyu Wang for a chance to reach the final of the Transylvania Open. The Chinese player, seeded seventh, ousted Nuria Parrizas Diaz 6-1, 7-6(5) in an hour and 33 minutes in their quarter-final clash.
Wang pulled off the win in straight sets despite managing to win only one of the 12 points played on her second serve. Photo Credit: Transylvania Open Twitter