Magda Linette reaches Chennai WTA 250 final after comeback over Zacharova

In brief

• Magda Linette is due to play Janice Tjen in the Chennai WTA 250 final, which was delayed by rain on Sunday.
• Linette, seeded third, beat Zakharova in the semifinal after coming back from a lost first set, and earlier recovered from a set down against Hontama.
• She is chasing her fourth WTA title and her first trophy in over two years; she has slipped from 52nd to 68th in the rankings this year.

Linette through to the final

Magda Linette, seeded third at the WTA 250 event in Chennai, has won four matches to reach the final. She beat Belarusian Alona Falei, Japan's Moyuka Uchijima, Mai Hontama and Russian Anastasia Zakharova along the way. (WTA w Chennai: Magda Linette - Janice Tjen. Relacja live i wynik na żywo – www.polsatsport.pl) Her semifinal against Zakharova turned on a late recovery after she dropped the opening set, and she closed it out after a long fight. (Kapitalne odrodzenie Linette dało jej finał – SportoweFakty) (Linette wyrzuciła Zacharową. Polka odwróciła losy meczu i jest w finale – msn.com)

Her win over Hontama in the quarterfinal followed a similar pattern. Hontama took the first set 6:4, but Linette won the next two 7:5 and 6:4, saving a 5:3 deficit in the second set and then holding her nerve in the decider when Hontama had a chance to lead 4:1. (Linette już w półfinale. Niesamowity zwrot akcji – meczyki.pl)

Final delayed by rain

The final was due to begin at 14:00 Polish time on Sunday, but rain pushed the start back. (Finał Magdy Linette opóźniony. Najnowsze wieści z Chennai – Przegląd Sportowy) Linette is chasing her fourth WTA title. She reached the Chennai final once before, in 2022, when she lost to Linda Fruhvirtova.

Opponent and head-to-head

Tjen, the top seed, reached the final after winning her earlier matches against Katherine Hui, Joanna Garland, Polina Kudermetova and Robin Montgomery. The two players have never met before, so Sunday's match will be their first meeting.

Ranking context

Linette began the year as Poland's second-ranked player at 52nd in the WTA rankings. She has since slipped to 68th, with a poor run in recent months. Her only semifinal before this week came in June in Den Bosch. A title in Chennai would mark her first trophy in more than two years.