Australian Storm Hunter has the possibility to reclaim the world No.1 rating in a high-stakes Indian Wells ladies’s doubles last.
Indian Wells, USA, 15 March 2024 | Leigh Rogers
Storm Hunter has change into the primary Australian in 14 years to advance to the Indian Wells ladies’s doubles last.
The 29-year-old Hunter and her Czech associate Katerina Siniakova secured their place within the championship match with a 6-4 6-4 victory at the moment towards American Asia Muhammad and Japan’s Ena Shibahara.
It’s the third seed’s fourth consecutive straight-sets win this event and units up a last showdown with the highest seeds, Chinese language Taipei’s Hsieh Su-wei and Belgian Elise Mertens.
This can be a rematch of the Australian Open 2024 semifinals earlier this 12 months, the place Mertens and Hsieh received a high-quality three-set battle.
World No.1 Mertens and world No.2 Hsieh ended the profitable run of Australian Ellen Perez and American Nicole Melichar-Martinez within the different semifinal at the moment, scoring a 6-2 7-6(5) victory.
In addition to competing for a WTA 1000 title within the Californian desert, the world No.1 rating is now up for grabs in a high-stakes last.
Mertens is ready to lose the world No.1 rating regardless, as 38-year-old Hsieh will reclaim the highest rating for the primary time since November 2021 ought to they safe the title.
But when Hunter wins the title, she is ready to rise from world No.3 to overhaul Mertens, her former associate, atop of the WTA Tour doubles rankings.
| 2024 season information | ||
| Hunter/Siniakova | Mertens/Hsieh | |
| Wins | 14 | 11 |
| Losses | 2 | 3 |
| Titles | 1 | 1 |
| Head-to-head | 0 | 1 |
Hunter additionally has the possibility to change into the primary Australian to win an Indian Wells ladies’s doubles title since Sam Stosur in 2007.
Stosur was additionally the latest Aussie finalist on the event in 2010.
The ladies’s doubles last is scheduled to be performed on Sunday morning (Australian time).
Aussies in motion – Indian Wells
RESULTS
Girls’s doubles, semifinals
[3] Storm Hunter (AUS)/Katerina Siniakova (CZE) d Asia Muhammad (USA)/Ena Shibahara (JPN) 6-4 6-4
[1] Hsieh Su-wei (TPE)/Elise Mertens (BEL) d [4] Ellen Perez (AUS)/Nicole Melichar-Martinez (USA) 6-2 7-6(5)
COMING UP
Girls’s doubles, last
[3] Storm Hunter (AUS)/Katerina Siniakova (CZE) v [1] Hsieh Su-wei (TPE)/Elise Mertens (BEL)
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