Top seed Jabeur to face Bencic in Berlin final / Photo: Tobias SCHWARZ - AFP
Top seed Jabeur to face Bencic in Berlin final
Top seed Ons Jabeur will face Olympic champion Belinda Bencic in the final of Berlin's WTA grass-court tournament after the Tunisian saw off American teenager Coco Gauff in straight sets on Saturday.
Gauff, 18, who reached her first Grand Slam final at the French Open earlier this month, succumbed to defeat in the semi-final as Jabeur earned a 7-6(7/4), 6-2 victory.
After grinding out a win when the first set went to a tie breaker, Jabeur kept the Gauff under pressure, breaking Gauff three times in the second set before converting her second match point.
In her earlier semi-final Bencic came from behind against Maria Sakkari, a match which lasted over three hours in scorching temperatures.
Bencic rallied from losing the hard-fought first set, which lasted 76 minutes, to secure a 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-4 win in temperatures of around 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit) in the shade.
P.Mancini--GdR
