Latvian Sevastova halts Wang's winning streak in Dubai

Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia beat Chinese top player Wang Qiang 6-4, 7-5 in the quarterfinals of the 17th WTA Dubai Duty Free (DDF) Tennis Championships 2017 here on Thursday.

The match started in favour of the 76th-ranked Wang, however Sevastova, 26, who committed many unforced errors in the beginning, managed to turn the table by switching between slices and lops.

"Wang is very solid, she started very well, but I did not want to give her the rhythm," said the 35th-ranked Sevastova.

Wang, who stands at 1.72-meter tall, told Xinhua that she did not feel exhausted from previous matches, "I lost some decisive points and that made the difference today, compared to my successful matches before."

Wang scored a sensation the day before when she defeated French top player Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets in the tournament's round of 16. The final of the 2.6 million dollar women's tournament will take place on Saturday.

"Women's tennis is so close nowadays, everyone can win against everybody," said Sevastova who played an emotional style and did not shy away from shouting at herself after she made double faults or unforced errors in the DDF tennis stadium near Dubai International Airport.

Wang on the other hand retained her nerves and appeared more self-controlled. "I try to be stable during an entire match. I always want to avoid the ups and downs," explained Wang.

The 25-year-old Chinese will leave Dubai on Friday for Kuala Lumpur where she plays the BMW Malaysian Open which runs from February 27 until March 5. Endit