Australian teenager Maya Joint has fallen short of reaching the Hong Kong Open final after she was surprisingly beaten in straight sets by Cristina Bucșa.
Although it was a disappointing result for Joint, Bucșa produced an impressive performance to beat the Australian women’s number one, 6-3, 6-1, and advance to her first WTA 250 final.
There was better news for one of Joint’s predecessors as the top-ranked Australian player, Kimberly Birrell won the longest match of her career, defeating Taiwanese Joanna Garland, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 7-5, to reach the Chennai Open final.
Joint, 19, has enjoyed a stellar year, highlighted by tournament wins in Rabat and Eastbourne.
She was favourite to beat the 68th-ranked Bucșa on Saturday and led 3-2 after five games without a break.
But Spaniard Bucșa reeled off the next seven games on her way to wrapping up victory in just 58 minutes.
The defeat was a rare setback for US-born Joint, who has soared from outside the top 100 to number 32 in the world this season.
De Minaur upset by familiar foe
Joint will be vying for a seeding spot at January’s Australian Open.
Third seed Victoria Mboko won an all-Canadian clash in the second semifinal when she defeated second-seeded Leylah Fernandez, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
In Chennai, Birrell followed up her victory over Croatian third seed Donna Vekić with a monumental performance against Garland.
Birrell saved four match points before completing victory in three hours and 19 minutes.
She will face Indonesian fourth-seeded Janice Tjen in the final.
AAP