Vying for title number four on the WTA Tour, British number one Katie Boulter squares up to top seed Diana Shnaider in the final of the Hong Kong Open on Sunday. Boulter's semi-final showdown with Yuan Yue went the distance before the former triumphed in three, while her youthful foe laid down a serious marker by defeating 2023 winner Leylah Fernandez in the last four. © Imago While Boulter's first-ever meeting with Yuan at this year's Australian Open saw the Briton prevail in two sets, it was a far from straightforward affair for the second seed Down Under, and she was pushed to the brink by her Chinese foe in Saturday's Hong Kong semi.
However, a blistering start to the deciding set proved telling for the world number 29, who came out from their two-hour and 33-minute marathon with a 6-2 5-7 6-2 victory under her belt to reach final number four on the WTA Tour. The semi-final slog was chalk and cheese for Boulter as far as her serving was concerned, as she landed an astonishing 96 of her 99 first serves for a success rate of 97%, but on the three occasions that she missed a first serve, she registered a double fault each time. Nevertheless, the 28-year-old's offensive prowess came to the fore as she brought up 15 break points on the Chinese player's serve, converting six of them to ensure that she would at least go one better than her semi-final exit at the Toray Pan Pacific Open last month.
Boulter is also yet to settle for a runners-up prize on the WTA Tour, winning each.
