Sixth seeds Ellen Perez and Nicole Melichar-Martinez will vie for a berth in the WTA Finals decider for the second year running after winning their final group-stage match at the season-ending championships.
The Australian-American duo eased past top seeds Lyudmyla Kichenok and Jelena Ostapenko 6-1 6-3 in Riyadh for a second win from three clashes to finish second in the Green Group.
“We made a lot of first serves and were able to jam them up pretty well,” Perez told wtatennis.com. “We kept really positive and energetic, and that was the goal for the match – just to stay upbeat.”
Through to the final four 🤩🤩@EllenPerez95 and her American doubles partner Nicole Melichar-Martinez finish the WTA Finals group stage with a 2-1 record and will compete in the event’s semifinals👏#GoAussies #WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/KEOy1jzYcD
— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) November 6, 2024
Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend remained unbeaten on top of the group after they ended third seeds Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens’ campaign, which ensured Perez and Melichar-Martinez’s progression to the knockout stage.
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Perez and Melichar-Martinez’s last year reached the title match at the WTA Finals in Cancan where they fell to Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva.
The pair will bid to go one better this year after a season that has included WTA 500 titles together in San Diego and Bad Homburg and runners-up showings in Dubai and Linz.
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