Italy's Jasmine Paolini to face Anna Kalinskaya in Dubai Championships final

DUBAI: Jasmine Paolini of Italy held off Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 7-6 (6) to advance to the final of the Dubai Championships on Friday.

Paolini saved six set points in the second set to reach her first WTA 1000 final, where she'll face qualifier Anna Kalinskaya on Saturday.

"I gave you a little bit of drama at the end of the match," the 28-year-old Italian said in her on-court interview.

Winning in just under two hours against her Romanian opponent, the 26th-ranked Paolini is a victory away from the second tour-level title of her career.

Paolini reached the fourth round at the Australian Open last month - her best performance at a Grand Slam - where she lost to Kalinskaya in straight sets.

The victory ensures Paolini will crack the top 20 for the first time in next week's rankings. She broke into the top 30 last October.

Her only WTA title was at Portoroz, Slovenia, in 2021.

Qualifier Anna Kalinskaya stunned World No.1 Iga Swiatek in other semifinals by 6-4, 6-4, snapping the World No.1's seven-match winning streak and advancing to her first Hologic WTA Tour-level singles final.

The loss is just Swiatek's second in her last 26 matches dating back to last September's WTA 500 event in Tokyo. At World No.40, Kalinskaya, meanwhile, is the sixth-lowest ranked player to ever make the final in Dubai in its two-plus decade history, and is the first qualifier to reach the final at the tournament. Agencies

Also Read: US Open: Serena Williams to face Danka Kovinic in first round; Swiatek to meet Paolini

Also Watch: