Beijing, Oct 7 (IANS): Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova, the World No. 20, upset Japan's Naomi Osaka, the eighth seed, 6-4, 6-4 win on Saturday to qualify for the China Open final.
The first set started very close, while Sevastova managed to break the serve to the US Open champion to have a 4-3 lead, allowing her to gain confidence, reports Efe news.
Osaka, the World No. 6, went to the court ready to fight in the second set, which also started very close, but the Japanese player was losing strength little by little, perhaps she was worn out after her tough win over China's Shuai Zhang on Friday in the quarterfinals.
Unseeded Sevastova needed one hour and 31 minutes to win and reach the final, the biggest in her career.
Sevastova is set to play the final against the winner of the match between Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, the second seed and winner of the Australian Open this year, and wildcard Wang Qiang of China.