Chwalinska edges Sakkari in Wuhan thriller to make third WTA semifinal
Roland Garros finalist Maja Chwalinska will make her Top 20 debut on Monday after the No. 16 seed edged Maria Sakkari 6-0, 3-6, 7-5 in a 2-hour, 35-minute barnburner on Friday to make the final four at the Dongfeng • Voyah Wuhan Open.
It will be the third tour-level semifinal, and first on outdoor hard courts, of Chwalinska's career. Two of those semifinals have come in the past month, following her run to the last four in Singapore. The Pole has used her Asian Swing debut to demonstrate that the creative game style that enthralled fans during her Parisian breakthrough can be just as effective away from clay. So far on the continent, she's compiled a 7-2 record, including her first pair of Top 20 wins.
Chwalinska will get the chance to extend that further when she takes on either childhood friend, former junior doubles partner and Polish compatriot Iga Swiatek or Ann Li in the semifinals.
Familiar foe, familiar fight
In the previous round, Chwalinska had dismantled 18-year-old Iva Jovic's game, delivering a masterclass in variety to win nine of the last 10 games. She picked up where she left off against Sakkari, skilfully out-manoeuvring the Greek player and dropping just one point behind her first serve. The left-handed Chwalinska even pulled off a remarkable right-handed lob, stretched far out wide by Sakkari's hefty attempted one-two punch.
Having to use her non-dominant arm didn't hamper Chwalinska's touch in the slightest: the lob was pinpoint perfect, and an effective reset of a rally she ultimately claimed with a succession of backhand winners.
The 25-year-old sealed her fifth career 6-0 set at tour level with a terrific angled pass, and held a break point in the first game of the second set -- only to send a too-cute backhand slice just wide. That was the cue for Sakkari, who had contributed 14 unforced errors in a wayward first set, to raise her level and rein her game in.
The former No. 3 struck in the very next game, putting away a forehand winner to break for the first time -- a lead she held on to throughout an impressive second set, in which she fired 17 winners to only eight unforced errors.
In the opener, Sakkari had been drawn into error by Chwalinska's variety and placement; now, she was able to stick in extended rallies, and answer Chwalinska's most creative plays with even superior ones. Twice in the fourth game, Chwalinska attempted to foil Sakkari with defensive drop shots; both times, Sakkari not only reached them but had the wherewithal to steer sliced backhand winners into the corner.
The stage was set for a riveting decider in which both players held firm on serve through the first 11 games. Sakkari repeatedly showed her mettle when facing break points, frequently finding her best forehands and volleys to fend them off -- but she also found herself under that pressure more often than Chwalinska. The 31-year-old saved the first five break points against her in the third set (across three separate games) -- indeed, she saved 11 out of 15 during the whole match.
Chwalinska, though, had a similarly impressive rate of saving break points -- while having to face far fewer. She staved off four out of five overall, including the only one against her in the third set (with a drive volley winner in the fifth game). Repeatedly, Chwalinska was able to reset after missing opportunities on Sakkari's serve with a relatively straightforward hold.
"I was surprised about this number," Chwalinska said when asked about those break point statistics. "I didn't think about that. But I felt like in the third set, I was very solid on my serve and had a few chances on her service games -- but I mean, during the break points I think she covered them really well and honestly I couldn't do much. So I feel like I was just very solid during my service games today."
The World No. 22 had also adjusted her tactics as Sakkari had cut down her mistakes. She used her drop shot-lob combination more frequently in the decider than in the previous two sets, wheeling it out four times in one mid-set five-game stretch and winning the point every time.
In the final game of the match, Chwalinska deployed that pattern yet again to get herself into another Sakkari service game. Having worked so hard to keep her accuracy disciplined for nearly two sets, Sakkari then reverted to her first-set form in the home stretch, netting a forehand on her own game point then a short backhand down a first match point.
Despite cruising to the first set, the way in which the match played out was no surprise to Chwalinska. Having lost to Sakkari in their first meeting in 2025 Rome qualifying, she had won their third-round rematch at Roland Garros 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 -- but that had been the only set she had conceded before the final.
"It was such a physical match," she said. "Of course, I expected a very tough match against Maria. I played her twice already and both the occasions were very, very tough. It wasn't different today."