March 16, (THEWILL) – Greek tennis player, Maria Sakkari, secured her spot in the back-to-back Indian Wells semi-finals after beating Petra Kvitova in a hard-fought match.
Sakkari won her fourth consecutive three-set win at Indian Wells, coming from a set and a break down to beat the 15th seed 4-6 7-5 6-1. This victory is the third straight comeback win for Sakkari, who will next face world number two Aryna Sabalenka in the semis.
Kvitova had been in good form after knocking out world number three, Jessica Pegula, in the previous round. However, Sakkari was able to break back and close out the set in her next service game. The momentum shifted in the second set, with Sakkari proving more consistent and better on serve, leading to Kvitova’s 12 double faults.
The Greek player secured another break for 5-1 and closed out the win with a forehand winner in two hours and 15 minutes. Her win over Kvitova marks one of the best comebacks of her career. She has now won her last two meetings against world number two Sabalenka, who beat Coco Gauff to reach the semis.
The other quarter-finals see the top ranked Iga Swiatek face Sorana Cirstea and Karolina Muchova meet Wimbledon champion, Elena Rybakina.
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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
