Dabrowski and Routliffe book semifinal spot at WTA Finals Cancun

No.7 seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe secured a spot in the semifinals of the GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun with an impressive 6-4, 6-2 win over No.6 seeds Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva on a windy Wednesday.

Dabrowski and Routliffe’s consecutive straight-sets victory in the Mahahual Group guarantees their advancement to the single-elimination semifinals this weekend. Earlier in the week, they had already defeated No.1 seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula in group play.

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In a rematch of this year’s US Open final, Dabrowski and Routliffe replicated their success in New York City by defeating Siegemund and Zvonareva once again in two sets. This time, they secured the win in 1 hour and 28 minutes.

Siegemund and Zvonareva still have a chance to advance in the Mahahual Group with a 1-1 record. They previously defeated No.4 seeds Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday.

Read more: Passion, dedication drive 39-year-old Zvonareva back to the WTA Finals

In the first set on Wednesday, a powerful return from Routliffe put pressure on Zvonareva, resulting in a long volley and giving Dabrowski and Routliffe a break lead of 4-3. Dabrowski saved two break points while serving for the set at 5-4, ultimately winning the opening frame.

In the second set, Dabrowski and Routliffe took control with a 5-2 lead after Dabrowski executed a perfect volley to break Siegemund without dropping a point. Despite some resistance from their opponents, Dabrowski and Routliffe triumphed in a thrilling all-court rally to secure the victory.

Later on Wednesday, No.2 seeds Storm Hunter and Elise Mertens claimed a 7-5, 6-4 win over No.8 seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Ellen Perez in their group play match.

Hunter and Mertens now hold a commanding 2-0 record in the Maya Ka’an Group after successfully completing the two-day affair. This match was interrupted by rain and had to be resumed on Wednesday with Hunter and Mertens leading 7-5, 2-0.

This was the first match of the week for Melichar-Martinez and Perez, as their Monday night match was also affected by rain. They currently stand at 0-1 in the Maya Ka’an Group.

When serving for the first set at 6-5 on Tuesday night, Hunter faced a deciding point that could have either sealed the set or led to a tiebreak. Hunter held strong and secured the one-set lead after 47 minutes.

Continuing their match on Wednesday, Melichar-Martinez and Perez fought back by breaking Hunter’s serve to even the score at 4-4. However, Perez’s forehand error in the following game resulted in a service break, and Mertens closed out the victory with an ace on their first match point.