Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe crashed out of the WTA Finals after losing the doubles category in the semis. Nicole Melicher-Martinez and Ellen Perez have accomplished the winning feat. The contest between the 7th seed and the 8th seed was not even close to being a neck-to-neck competition. The final tally read 1-6, 7-6, and 6-10.
The pair had two consecutive wins in the group stage and were likely to bag their next win. Now, both champions hailing from Canada and New Zealand, respectively, will have to pack their bags. The American and Australian duo will move on to face the 6th-seeded couple, Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva, from Germany and Russia, respectively.
Having said that, it is interesting to note that Vera and Laura’s previous win was a rather convenient one despite losing the opening set by a broad margin of 3 points. They brought the ultimate total to 3-6, 6-3, and 10-5.
The WTA Finals, the preeminent tennis event on the women’s calendar, will now be contested in the Doubles category by Siegemund-Zvonareva and Melichar-Perez.
As per the latest Canadian Gaming news, the event will be followed by a probable close encounter between Swiatek and Pegula in the Singles category. Both come from a win in the semis that looks swift. Swiatek bagged 6-3 and 6-2 in both sets against Aryna Sabalenka, while Pegula registered a 6-2 and 6-1 win against Gauff.
The loss of Gabriela and her partner has led to a flow of mixed emotions. They were unbeaten in the group stage. Hence, they were favorites to win the game for the final lap. However, a difference of 10 points is precisely what tanked their chances. Ellen+ scored 70 points against Gabriela+, bringing home only 60 points. A total of 20 games were played, with 60% going in favor of the winners. Gabriela+ could only land 8 games to their names.
In contrast, the difference between points won in another semi-final round was only 6 points. Both sides won nine games each; however, the now-finalists bagged 58 points against 52.
It was Estadio Paradisus that hosted the Semis. The same venue will return for the final game. Both finalists have stunned the audience before. So, it would not be surprising to see either of them replicating those emotions. Chances are, though, that Melichar and Perez could continue their A-game under the momentum that is less likely to fade away.
Meanwhile, what’s hurting Gabriela is the fact that she had to face elimination at the Japan Open and the China Open’s Round of 16. The last win the pair registered was in the US Open against Siegmund and Zvonareva at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The score was 7-6 and 6-3 after defeating Wang and Hsieh 6-1 and 7-6.
Simply put, the disappointment in the WTA Finals comes from the awareness of being one of the best pairs and yet losing it due to minor faults.
