Kvitova continues dream run as she reaches Dubai final

Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic is aiming to win her second Dubai title (KT photo)

Second seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic won a grueling three-set (3-6 6-2 6-4) battle against Su-Wei Hsieh in the first semifinal to book her place in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Friday.
Kvitova, the Australian Open runner-up, will take on the winner of the second semifinal between two-time defending champion Elina Svitolina of Ukraine and Belinda Bencic of Switzerland.
The 28-year-old Czech player will aim to win her second title in Dubai, having won the tournament here in 2013.
But on Friday, she had to overcome a tough battle against the 33-year-old Hsieh.
"She is a very tricky player. I didn't play that well in the first set. But I came back strong in the next two sets," Kvitova said after the match.
"I knew I needed to be a bit patient with her. It's not really easy to make those winners against her."
The Australian Open finalist admitted that she was not expecting to reach the final in Dubai - a tournament where nine of the world's top 10 players entered.
"I honestly didn't expect to be in the final here. So it's great for me. I am very happy. It's a big bonus for me. Now I need to recover well for the final."
Both players had a roller-coaster ride on Friday evening, with Hsieh dominating the first set against a player she has never played in the past.

Ekaterina Makarova of Russia and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic celebrate their doubles semifinal win on Friday. (Photo by Neeraj Murali)
Kvitova was clearly struggling against the world number 31 -- a player known for her unorthodox style of play.
But the two-time Wimbledon champion bounced back in the second set with some superb groundstrokes and exquisite net play.
Neither player could hold serve in the first three games of the final set. But Kvotiva finally got her rhythm back on her serve to take a 3-1 lead.
Hsieh saved three break points in the fifth game to finally hold her serve in the third set, but Kvitova still had the advantage of two breaks.
A combination of strong serve on big points and forehands saved Kvitova in a nine-minute sixth game as she took a 4-2 lead.
Hsieh struggled again with her serve in the next game before saving a break point to stay in the match.
Kvitova was unstoppable in the next game, holding her serve at love, before the turning the heat on Hsieh who was serving to stay in the match at 3-5.
Hsieh survived when Kvitova's ferocious forehand hit the net.
Serving for the match in the next game, the Czech held her nerve and used her massive serve and the angles well to deny her rival a hint of a chance as she clinched the match with four straight points, ending what was a fantastic two-hour-nine-minute battle on the Centre Court.
Meanwhile, seventh seeds Ekaterina Makarova of Russia and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic entered the doubles final with a straight sets (6-2 6-4) semifinal win over the unseeded Lara Arruabarrena of Spain and Kaitlyn Christian of the US.
Makarova, a three-time Grand Slam winner in doubles who also won a doubles gold medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics, is aiming to win her second Dubai title after her victory here with compatriot Elena Vesnina in 2017.
Su-Wei Hsieh of Taiwan and Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic will take on ninth seeds Hao-Ching Chan of Taiwan and Latisha Chan of Taiwan.