Google News Hungarian Grand Prix: Yulia Putintseva sets semis face-off against Aleksandra Krunic
by ABBEY JOHNSON
Yulia Putintseva reached the semi-finals of the Hungarian Grand Prix for the second year in a row after coming through in her quarter-final on Friday. The third seed from Kazakhstan advanced to the second-last round after her opponent, Lesia Tsurenko retired in their match with Putintseva leading 6-0, 2-0.
In the semis, Putintseva will play Aleksandra Krunic. The Serbian who dropped just one game in her round-of-16 match against Shuai Zhang was similarly dominant in her quarter-final against Zhang’s compatriot, Xiyu Wang.
The 29-year-old won 6-0, 6-1 in 63 minutes. Krunic won 70% of her first-serve points and 67% points on first-serve return. Likewise, she won 78% of her second-serve points and 77% of points on second-serve return. However, unlike in her match against Zhang where she lost her serve once, this time, Krunic saved the lone break point she faced while converting six of the seven break points she had on Wang’s serve.
Hungarian Grand Prix: Anna Bondar keeps the Hungarian flag flying in Budapest
The ninth-seeded Anna Bondar upset the second-seeded Martina Trevisan in their quarter-final match. The Hungarian won 6-4, 6-1 in an hour and 42 minutes.
Bondar won 71% of her first-serve points to Trevisan’s 49%. Both players won a similar percentage of second-serve points – Bondar won almost 41% to the Italian’s 40%. In terms of break point conversions, Bondar saved three of the five break points she faced while converting six of the 17 break points she had on Trevisan’s serve.
Looking to clinch a place in the Hungarian Grand Prix final, Bondar will next play Bernarda Pera. The American got past Trevisan’s fellow countrywoman, Elisabetta Cocciaretto in their last-eight clash, 6-4, 6-3 in an hour and 26 minutes.
Pera lost her serve twice but converted five of the seven break points she had on Cocciaretto’s serve. She finished the match with 65 points to her opponent’s 45.