Sofia Kenin, after defeating fellow American Danielle Collins in the last round, surged into the finals in Paris as she put to an end Petra Kvitova’s hopes.
The American saw victory once again and has booked a final showdown with Iga Swiatek at Roland-Garros after she pushed past two-time Grand Slam champion Petra Kvitova 6-4, 7-5, to reach her second Grand Slam final of 2020.
Kenin is now on course to become the first woman to win two major titles in the same year since Angelique Kerber in 2016 after also claiming her maiden major title at this year’s Australian Open.
Despite heavy, windy conditions, Kenin, however, played frontrunner to perfection and saved breakpoints by the bucket as she kept ferocious Kvitova at bay.
Watch the match highlights below
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Kenin won in straight sets but the final result was far closer than the scoreline indicated. The American scored high marks for pinging the high notes when she needed to – she saved 10 of 12 breakpoints, including four during a line-in-the-sand sixth game of the second set, which allowed her to consolidate for a 4-2 lead.
She saved another break point while serving out the match, and later admitted she was down on herself after surrendering the break in the 10th game, which drew Kvitova level in the set.
“I just kept telling myself to keep fighting,” Kenin says. “I obviously expected her to play better. Yes, I went down on myself, but I just told myself to keep playing.”
Kenin also showed she is a tough nut to crack, even for a tour de force such as Kvitova. She demonstrated court craft, angles, touch, and finesse beyond her years.
She also forced Kvitova to go for the lines repeatedly, a strategy that paid dividends and ultimately proved the difference.
Kenin was convinced her victory over Serena Williams in the third round last year at Roland-Garros is the engine force behind her. She said from that point on she realised she could make an impact on the surface.
“I felt underpowered. I couldn’t control the points,” she says of her beginnings on clay.
“I didn’t have great movement on clay. It was a bit of a struggle for me. Definitely, after playing against Serena, it gave me a boost in confidence.”
It has been a complete turnaround for Kenin on the surface since.
“I feel like I’m playing some of my best tennis on clay,” she says. “I’m sliding a lot, moving a lot. I know how to adjust to the surface, so I’m loving the clay.”
The young American superstar now hopes she can write one more chapter into the story of her breakthrough 2020 season.
“Hopefully might be another piece to write that I won Roland-Garros, which would be really special,” she says.
Congrats