The road to the semis was anything but predictable as it was drama during the last day of the round robin matches. There was a possibility of Serena Williams not making it into the semi-finals – if Ana Ivanovic wins in straight sets against Simona Halep or Agnieszka Radwanska is bowing out of the WTA Finals, thanks to a 3 set loss to Maria Sharapova – should Petra Kvitova wins against Caroline Wozniacki.
However, despite defeating Simona, Ana dropped the 2nd Set, which meant Serena was through to the semis. And there were no surprises in the match between Petra vs Caroline, with Caroline winning in straight sets. And Caroline also has a chance of pocketing the maximum prize money (US$2.19million) if she wins the title – as the only player with all 3 round robin wins!
Also with the results on Friday, it also meant Serena will end the year with the no. 1 ranking – just the fourth time in her career!
The semis looks to be interesting as Serena will take on her “bestie” Caroline in the first semi-final match followed by Agnieszka taking on Simona. While crushing Eugenie Bouchard in her third round robin match 6-1 6-1, Serena at times seems to be struggling throughout the tournament, and Simona looks to be riding high with great form coming into the WTA Finals, but she will be up against a tough opponent known to chase down balls and has excellent shot-making skills.
Who will make it into the finals come Sunday? We can only find out tomorrow once the matches have been completed.
Cedric’s prediction: Serena Williams vs Simona Halep in the finals, with Serena avenging one of her worst loss in her career to take home the Championship trophy.
*For tournament schedule download the WTA Finals app in the iTunes app store or Google Play
Story by Cedric “Maybe Simona” Tang