No. 8 seed Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic became the first player to book her spot in the semifinals at the WTA Finals when she defeated No. 4 seed Coco Gauff 6-3, 6-3 on Tuesday in Indian Wells, Calif.
At 21, Noskova is the youngest player to advance to the semifinals in her maiden WTA Finals appearance since 2011 (Petra Kvitova). Noskova previously beat Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in straight sets, leaving her 2-0 without a dropped set with one Group 1 match to go.
Noskova also evened her career record against Gauff at 2-2, winning both meetings this season after losing their first two encounters. She understood the American crowd was rooting for her opponent.
“Thank you guys for the cheers I’m getting now — but it was a little weaker in the match, guys, I’m not going to lie,” Noskova joked in her on-court interview, per the BBC.
“I feel like I stayed in the match through every moment, from beginning to end.”
Noskova had the edge in winners (19-17) as well as fewer unforced errors (15-21 She broke Gauff four times in the opening set and once more early in the second to build a 3-0 lead before closing out the victory.
Either Gauff or No. 5 seed Jessica Pegula will join Noskova in the semifinals out of Group 1.
Pegula swept past Kostyuk 6-2, 7-5 earlier in the day. Kostyuk — who entered the eight-woman tournament as an alternate when World No. 1 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan withdrew due to a viral illness — fell to 0-2 and was eliminated from contention for the semis.
Pegula converted 5 of 11 break points and benefited from Kostyuk’s 47 unforced errors.
Although Gauff defeated Pegula in their opening match, Pegula has the inside track to reach the semifinals. Pegula controls her own fate, advancing with a victory over Noskova on Thursday. She also would qualify with a loss if Gauff falls to Kostyuk, which would leave Pegula, Gauff and Kostyuk tied at 1-2 and give Pegula the tiebreaker on sets won.
“Once I got off to a good start today, I definitely didn’t want to give away that second set,” Pegula said after her match. “In general I wouldn’t want to, but I think it was a bit of an extra push to be able to give myself the best chance in this group, considering I did lose the first match.”
–Field Level Media
