The semi-finals are starting to take shape at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo with British ace Katie Boulter finding her way through to an interesting battle with Sofia Kenin in Tokyo.
Boulter took just 63 minutes to battle past Bianca Andreescu dismantling the former US Open champion 6-2, 6-1 who perhaps was fortunate to reach this point after taking advantage of Beatriz Haddad Maia getting injured.
But Boulter was a shining light on Friday morning. Kenin then booked her spot shortly after seeing off last week's Ningbo champion Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 6-4.
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Diana Shnaider is also through after Sayaka Ishii handed her a walk-over. The line-up will be complete shortly with Leylah Fernandez set to face Qinwen Zheng. But the Boulter win was domination from start to finish.
She produced 23 winners to just five from Andreescu and took 5/7 break point chances. Breaking in the opening service game, she survived a break point to hold in the next and eased through the first set from there taking control of the tie.
The second was even more emphatic and perhaps was a showcase of where the Andreescu game isn't at the moment. Losing opening round to Greet Minnen last week, she is in no form at all and perhaps was proven here as Boulter took her apart with three breaks in the set and not allowing her any break points after the opening set. Domination from start to finish and it could yet be the ending to the season for Boulter that she wants after the best year of her career to date.
She is still yet to drop a set this tournament having beaten Priscilla Hon in straight sets before thrashing Kyoka Okamura in the Quarter-Final. Kenin will be an interesting tie as on paper it could be close but like Andreescu, the American blows hot and cold as of late.
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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