Storm Sanders has produced another dominant straight sets victory at the Australian Open Wildcard Play-Off to charge into the final at Melbourne Park.
Sanders is now just one win away from a place at January’s Australian Open – an achievement that would have seemed very unlikely just months ago after only making a return to singles late in the year.
The 25-year-old West Australian again looked calm and in control during her 7-6 (1) 6-2 win over Abbie Myers in Saturday’s semifinals after getting through a tight opening set.
Sanders is yet to drop a set in the tournament, knocking out the third, fifth and eighth seeds along the way.
The left hander will now take on No.4 seed Arina Rodionova in the decider on Sunday morning, with the all-important Australian Open Wildcard on the line.
The pair have played plenty of doubles together, including in China just a few weeks ago.
“I’m really excited to play her,” Sanders told emageogroup.com. “I think it’s going to be a really good match. We’re both fighting for an Australian Open Wildcard, so it’s pretty massive. I’m just going to go out there and do my thing and just be really solid and see what happens. I think it will be who can handle the situation better with the Wildcard up for grabs.”
Sanders said playing two days in a row was not an issue for her, insisting it suited her better than having a day’s break between games.
She planned to go home and try to switch off a bit tonight before taking the court again in the morning.
Sanders knows the prize for a win is huge, but is simply trying to enjoy the moment after surprising even herself with her rapid progress in her comeback.
“I’m just happy to be in another final,” she said. “I’ve played three really good matches and I just want to go out and play another solid match and keep improving and obviously if I get the win then that’s an absolute bonus and an amazing opportunity.
“I was really not expecting to be here playing in the Play-Off and then also the final. I just want to enjoy it, I don’t want to put pressure on myself because I want to enjoy the experience and for it to be a positive experience.”