Maja Chwalińska outplayed Elise Mertens in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2, and advanced to the semifinals of the WTA 500 tournament in Singapore, played on hard courts with a prize fund of $1.2 million.
Match progress
Chwalińska took the first set 6-2. The second set followed the same pattern: the Pole again closed it out 6-2, leaving her opponent no chance to reduce the deficit in sets.
The match lasted 88 minutes.
In the statistics, Chwalińska won more points overall, 62 to 42 for Mertens. On her first serve, the Pole collected 23 points from 33 first-serve attempts, while the Belgian had 14 points from 31 attempts. Chwalińska hit one ace and committed two double faults, while Mertens hit three aces with the same two double faults. The key factor was break-point conversion: Chwalińska converted 5 of 9 break chances, while Mertens managed to convert only 1 of 4.
On her way to the quarterfinals, Chwalińska beat Rebecca Šramková 6-4, 6-2 in the first round, and Aleksandra Oliynykova 6-0, 6-1 in the second round. Mertens defeated Barbora Krejčíková in the second round of this tournament. The head-to-head between Chwalińska and Mertens now stands in the Pole's favor: she has won all two of their matches, including this one.