Wuhan 2019: Friday's Order of Play and Match Points

CENTER COURT
Play starts at 2:30pm

[8] DUAN Yingying (CHN) / Veronika KUDERMETOVA (RUS) vs. Makoto NINOMIYA (JPN) / YANG Zhaoxuan (CHN)

Not before 4:30pm
[1] Ashleigh BARTY (AUS) vs. [9] Aryna SABALENKA (BLR)

Not before 7pm
Alison RISKE (USA) vs. [5] Petra KVITOVA (CZE)

[4] Anna-Lena GROENEFELD (GER) / Demi SCHUURS (NED) vs. [2] Elise MERTENS (BEL) / Aryna SABALENKA (BLR)

MATCH POINTS

Ashleigh Barty’s meeting with defending champion Aryna Sabalenka is a repeat of last year’s semifinal. The Belarusian won 7-6(2), 6-4 on that occasion.

Sabalenka has a 2-1 winning record against the WTA World No.1 on Tour, though she lost at the 2018 Australian Open to the French Open champion.

Barty also posts a victory in the pair’s last meeting – a 6-2, 6-2 success in the Fed Cup earlier this year.

The Australian is into the semifinals in Wuhan for the third time in succession. Her best result was a run to the 2017 final, when she was beaten by Caroline Garcia.

This duo also played the doubles final at the US Open just three weeks ago. Sabalenka lifted her first major alongside Elise Mertens, downing Barty and partner Victoria Azarenka, 7-5, 7-5.

The winner of the first semifinal will join Petra Kvitova as the only players to have reached two Wuhan Open finals. The Czech, who is the only player to have lifted the trophy twice, is going for a hat-trick of appearances in the showpiece.

Kvitova has won all four of her trips to the semis in tournaments during 2019.