Barbora Krejcikova, Garbine Muguruza reach Dubai final

Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejcikova returns the ball to Argentina’s Nadia Podoroska during their women’s singles fourth round tennis match on Day 8 of The Roland Garros 2020 French Open tennis tournament in Paris on October 4, 2020. (Photo by Thomas SAMSON / AFP)

Unseeded Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic continued her dominant play in the semifinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and will face former world No. 1 Garbine Muguruza in the tournament final Saturday.

Seeking her first career WTA singles title, Krejcikova has yet to drop a set in Dubai, sweeping past Jil Teichmann of Switzerland 7-5, 6-2 on Friday. No. 9 seed Muguruza needed seven match points to fend off a challenge from No. 10 seed Elise Mertens of Belgium in the earlier semifinal 6-4, 7-6 (5).

“Since the first match, I felt really good, with the balls, with the court, with the conditions here,” Krejcikova said after moving into just her second career WTA singles final.

Her only previous singles final came at Nurnberg in 2017, when she was runner-up to Kiki Bertens.

Spain’s Muguruza, who was runner-up in Doha to Petra Kvitova last week, is already playing in her third final of 2021, and is seeking her eighth career tour victory.

She is currently ranked No. 16 in the world, after briefly reaching No. 1 in 2017.