Warsaw Open: Romanian qualifier stuns Hantuchova

Ranked 209th in the world, Romanian qualifier Alexandra Dulgheru continued her fairytale run at the 2009 Warsaw Open by beating Slovakian sixth seed Daniela Hantuchova to reach the final of this $600,000 Premier claycourt tournament.

The semifinal match lasted nearly two hours and thirty minutes with Dulgheru building momentum in the third set and closing out the match comfortably 6-1. The final score: 6-4, 6-7, 6-1. Dulgheru will break into the top 200 for the first time in next week’s rankings regardless of her result in the final.

The other semifinal match was contested between Britain’s Anne Keothavong and Ukraine’s Alona Bondarenko, the 2007 runner-up who ousted returning Russian Maria Sharapova in the previous match.

In a match briefly interrupted by rain, the Ukrainian prevailed in two sets 6-2, 7-5 to set up a finals clash with Dulgheru. Bondarenko will now have a chance to improve her 2007 finish where she lost to now-retired former world number Justine Henin.

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WTA Profiles: Bondarenko | Dulgheru

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