Poland’s Iga Swiatek easily qualified for a second consecutive participation in the grand final of the Madrid Tennis Open on Thursday.
The world’s number one player, Swiatek defeated American Madison Keys, ranked 20th, 6-1, 6-3 in the semi-final.
The Madrid Open is the only major tournament played on clay in Europe that Swiatek has never won.
For Swiatek, it will be a third final this year, after her triumphs in Indian Wells and Doha.
Her opponent will be the winner of the duel, which will take place later Thursday, between Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, second in the world, and Kazakh Elena Rybakina, ranked fourth.
Sabalenka beat Swiatek in the final in Madrid last year.
In men, the no 4 in the world Daniil Medvedev, injured in the right thigh, retired after a set, thus opening the doors to the final four for the young Czech Jiri Lehecka (31e) at the Masters 1000 tournament.
Medvedev, treated for the first time off the court after only five games, and again massaged in the upper right thigh two games later, gave up after losing the first set 6-4 in around forty minutes. The 28-year-old Russian was clearly hampered in his movements and his support.
At 22, Lehecka appeared in the semi-finals of a Masters 1000 for the first time.
In the previous round, the robust Czech with a powerful serve – capable of exceeding 230 km/h – brought down Rafael Nadal, for the Spanish champion’s very last participation in the Madrid tournament.
For a place in the final, Lehecka will face Quebecer Félix Auger-Aliassime (35e), who earned his ticket to the semi-finals following the withdrawal of Italian Jannik Sinner due to a hip problem.
Sinner entered the tournament ranked second in the world rankings and as the top seed.
The other semi-final of the men’s singles will see the Russian Andrey Rublev (8e) face the American Taylor Fritz (13e).
With Agence France-Presse