Liudmila Samsonova defeated third-seeded Elena Rybakina 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 on Sunday in a semifinal postponed by rain that was originally scheduled to start on Saturday and about two hours before her Canadian Open title fight will get Jessica Pegula.
It took Samsonova 103 minutes to secure victory in a match that began at 1:30 p.m. ET (17:30 GMT) in Montreal, and she will now have a quick turnaround ahead of the final, which is “after a reasonable interval “ and not before 5:30 p.m. AND.
The No. 15-seeded Russian downed eight aces, broke Rybakina five times and saved three out of six break points to advance to the biggest final of her career.
“I honestly feel so tired. I don’t know how I did it today,” said Samsonova, who played two games on Friday to secure her spot in the semifinals.
“I want to enjoy the next game. I want to enjoy it and do my best. I know it will be more difficult for me than for the other one because I played the first game today but I think I can enjoy it. I have nothing to do.” lose.”
After forcing the deciding set, Samsonova maintained full control, beating Rybakina in the opening game and again in game seven to take a 5-2 lead before playing the game to a clean sheet.
Rybakina held firm early in the game, taking the 3-1 lead with a sharp forehand return across the edge of the field that landed in the back corner and frozen Samsonova at the baseline.
The 2022 Wimbledon champions confidently took a 5-1 lead when Samsonova handed the break with a double fault before Rybakina served to wrap up the 28-minute set and appeared to be on the mend.
In the second set, when Rybakina suddenly struggled on the service line, Samsonova used more variety in her shots and made good use of her dropshot, scoring a double break for a 5-1 lead before playing the frame.
Rybakina, whose 3.5-hour quarterfinal was the longest game in tournament history, dropped serve in the opener of the decider and immediately began grabbing her taped shoulder.
Samsonova saw her chance and kept her nerve in the big moments to reach her first WTA 1000 final.
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