Dubai 2020: Friday's Order of Play and Match Points

ORDER OF PLAY 

CENTRE COURT - 2:00 P.M. START
[5] Barbora KREJCIKOVA / ZHENG Saisai (CHN) vs. Desirae KRAWCZYK (USA) / Alison RISKE (USA)
Not before 5:00 P.M.
[8] Petra MARTIC (CRO) vs. Elena RYBAKINA (KAZ)
Not before 7:00 P.M.
[1] Simona HALEP (ROU) vs. [Q] Jennifer BRADY (USA)
[1] HSIEH Su-wei (TPE) / Barbora STRYCOVA (CZE) vs. [4] Gabriela DABROWSKI (CAN) / ZHANG Shuai (CHN)

MATCH POINTS

 Unseeded Elena Rybakina is looking to extend several of her WTA leads when she takes on Petra Martic in the first semifinal of Friday's order of play. Having entered the event with a WTA-best 17 wins, she's aiming for her fourth this week in Dubai and a fourth final appearance in 2020, all in her tournament debut.

Prior to this year, Martic had never won a main draw match here, falling in in the first round of the main draw in 2012 to Lucie Safarova and in 2019 to Katerina Siniakova. She also lost her first match in qualifying at the 2014 tournament to Maryna Zavenska.

However, Martic has not lost a set so far this week as the No.8 seed, beating Hsieh Su-wei, Barbora Strycova and Anett Kontaveit to reach her first semifinal since last September's Zhengzhou Open. 

Qualifier Jennifer Brady recorded a new career milestone by virtue of her three-set victory over Garbine Muguruza in the quarterfinals. The American previously reached her first quarterfinal at Premier level last month in Brisbane, losing to Petra Kvitova, and will be in uncharted territory in an Australian Open rematch against top seed Simona Halep.

Brady held three set points in the opening set of the pair's first round match in Melbourne, only to fall in straight sets. Halep also came from a set down to beat Brady last year at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, winning 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(5). Rybakina and Martic have never previously played. 

Halep was one of three former champions in the draw to start the week, but was the only one to make it out of the first round, with Belinda Bencic and Elina Svitolina both losing their opening matches. The Romanian was also the top seed at the 2015 tournament, where she won the title. 

In doubles, Barbora Strycova and Hsieh Su-wei are bidding for their third final in three tournaments in 2020, having won Brisbane and finished runner-up at the Australian Open.

Barbora Krejcikova, who won the Shenzhen Open with Katerina Siniakova, and Gabriela Dabrowski, who was runner-up in Adelaide with Darija Jurak, both seek their season's second final berths with different partners: Zheng Saisai and Zhang Shuai, respectively.