Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens, the 2022 WTA Finals Fort Worth champions, returned to the semifinals of the year-end finale with a 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in Riyadh.

WTA Finals: Scores | Draws | Order of play

The match was a straightforward winner-takes-all scenario: with Hsieh Su-Wei and Jelena Ostapenko already guaranteed to top the Martina Navratilova Group, Wednesday’s winners would be guaranteed to advance to the last four in second place. It was also a renewal of one of the key rivalries of the clay-court season, in which the two pairs faced each other in Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros. Kudermetova and Mertens won the first, and Errani and Paolini the next two.

In their first meeting away from clay, No. 4 seeds Kudermetova and Mertens stayed on the front foot, finding 28 winners to the Italians’ seven, to take a firm grasp of the contest. Crisp volleying from Kudermetova was a key throughout, while Mertens came up with some spectacular gets — in particular a twisting backhand reflex at 5-2 in the second set.

“Part of my tactic was to be aggressive from first ball to last ball,” said Kudermetova with a grin afterwards, referencing her role as the duo’s power half. “Elise, she had other tactics!”

Errani and Paolini have reprised many features of their 2023 season — the Rome and Beijing titles, and significant trophies on the courts of Roland Garros — in 2024. Their near-duplicate year also now includes a round-robin finish at the WTA Finals. The No. 1 seeds came out on top of a handful of spectacular all-court points but were uncharacteristically flat in important moments.

Both double faulted on the first break point they faced in each set, and Paolini’s signature forehand went awry on game point in three of the last four games of the match.

Hsieh and Ostapenko wrap group play with a perfect record

It goes without saying that Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko play two very different brands of tennis. They also bring equally distinct personalities to the court.

Both were on display Wednesday.

In a match with no consequences — Hsieh and Ostapenko had already clinched a WTA Finals semifinal spot, while Asia Muhammad and Demi Schuurs had already been eliminated — the No. 6 seeds rolled to their third straight win in Riyadh, 6-3, 6-1, in 67 minutes.

For the 39-year-old Hsieh, the approach was simple: have fun.

“I just needed to have some fun tonight, because we knew we were already in,” Hsieh said after the match. “But I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself.”

Ostapenko admitted she struggled to match her partner’s mindset, acknowledging that, at times, she can perhaps put unnecessary pressure on herself.

“Sometimes I do,” Ostapenko said. “Today I was getting frustrated at every single ball I was missing. I don’t know why but today was a bit hard. But thank you guys for staying so late here. It’s really nice to hear you cheering us on and I’m really happy with the win.”

Despite the lopsided score, the match was competitive early. Muhammad and Schuurs led 3-2 and were up a break in a first set that featured six deciding points.

But the No. 8 seeds faded quickly, dropping the next four games to lose the opening set and 10 of the final 11 games overall to bring their time in Riyadh to an unceremonious end. They finished their first WTA Finals together with an 0-3 record.

Hsieh and Ostapenko, meanwhile, head into the semifinals in peak form. They’ve won six straight sets since dropping the opening set in their first match against Kudermetova and Mertens.

The pair lost finals at both Wimbledon and the Australian Open this year and are still seeking their first title together. At this level, that elusive breakthrough appears possible.

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