Beautiful hug between Maria Sakkari and Misaki Doi, after Sakkari defeated the Japanese in straight sets in Tokyo. It was Misaki's last career tournament.
Maria Sakkari ends Misaki Doi's career with solid straight-sets win at Pan Pacific Open
WTAThursday, 28 September 2023 at 12:04
Maria Sakkari soared past home player Misaki Doi in the Round of 16 at the Toray Pan Pacific Open with a straight-sets victory of 6-3, 6-1, as Doi played the final match of her career at the WTA 500 event.
Sakkari took to the court at the Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo, Japan, to play her first match since winning her maiden WTA 1000 title at the Guadalajara Open in Mexico last week. The World No. 6 faced No. 331 Doi, who had already announced that she was retiring after the tournament due to a back injury.
The Japanese player had achieved a surprise victory over Petra Martic in the Round of 32, ousting the Croatian player 7-5, 6-2. However, it would be a huge challenge for her to extend her career beyond the match with Sakkari.
Sakkari stands firm against Doi's forehand
The 32-year-old from Chiba held her first service game, leading to chants of support from the home crowd. However, Sakkari secured her first break of the match shortly after. The Greek player's next service game was more of a challenge to hold though, as Doi fought back to take the game to a deuce.
At that point, Sakkari aced her opponent to get the advantage, before losing it with a double fault. Nevertheless, she had complete control of the next point and won back her advantage before securing the hold and guaranteeing the break from the previous game.
In Doi's next service game, she sent Sakkari running by hitting the lines on opposite sides of the court. Some brilliant ball-striking from the 28-year-old earned her some points but Doi ultimately deprived her of a second break point in this game.
While the impressive forehands continued from Doi, Sakkari held her break to win the first set. The latter then proceeded to have a much easier time in the second set, getting the break in Doi's first service game.
She then went up by a double break at 4-1 with an incredible forehand of her own and soon found herself serving for the match while Doi tried to cherish the last few points of her career. After the Japanese player hit the final point into the net, Sakkari booked herself a place in the quarter-final. There, she will face Caroline Garcia for the second time in less than a week after ousting the French player in the semi-final of the Guadalajara Open.
After the match, Sakkari praised Doi, saying it was an honor to play against her.
"I don't want to talk about myself today [...] “it was an honor to play against Misaki in her last ever professional match," she said.
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