Leylah Fernandez beat Kamilla Rakhimova 7-5, 6-3 and Diana Shnaider edged teenage wildcard Mia Pohankova 6-4, 7-6(7) in the Pan Pacific Open semi-finals in Tokyo, setting up a Sunday final between a fresher Fernandez and a battle-worn Shnaider at the WTA 500 event.
Tokyo, Japan: One finalist reached the last four without hitting a ball in the quarter-finals. The other had played three sets in each of her previous two rounds. On Saturday, both found a way through at the WTA 500 event, and the title will be decided between them on Sunday.
Shnaider survives the Pohankova tiebreak
Third seed Diana Shnaider took the opening set 6-4 against Mia Pohankova, the teenage wildcard who had stunned Naomi Osaka earlier in the week. The second set went the distance. Pohankova pushed it to a tiebreak, but Shnaider closed it out 9-7 for a 6-4, 7-6(7) win.
The Russian has earned her place the hard way. She came from a set down in the quarter-finals to beat Alexandra Eala 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-4, after taking a three-set win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the previous round. She is chasing her first title of the year.
Fernandez keeps rolling
Unseeded Leylah Fernandez took a tight first set 7-5 against Kamilla Rakhimova and then closed out the second 6-3. The Canadian reached the final with earlier wins over Himeno Sakatsume (6-2, 6-4) and fifth seed Elise Mertens (6-2, 7-6(8)), followed by a walkover when top seed Elena Rybakina withdrew from the tournament with a neck injury before their quarter-final.
Fernandez arrives in form. She won the Singapore Open in September and lost the Ningbo final to Rybakina last week, so Sunday offers a chance at a second title of the year.
Sunday’s final
The contrast is clear. Fernandez has had the easier road, with a walkover in the quarter-finals, while Shnaider has fought through two three-setters and a second-set tiebreak. The final is scheduled for Sunday, 1 November, in Tokyo.
Semi-final results (Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo):
Leylah Fernandez (CAN) d. Kamilla Rakhimova (UZB) 7-5, 6-3
Diana Shnaider (3) d. Mia Pohankova (SVK) 6-4, 7-6(7)
Final (Sunday): Leylah Fernandez v Diana Shnaider
