Brisbane International 2017: Saturday Tennis Scores, Results, Updated Schedule
Karolina Pliskova is the 2017 Brisbane International champion after she romped to a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Alize Cornet in Saturday's final.
The third seed started the match in sensational style, with her opponent unable to get on the scoreboard in the opening stanza. Cornet did improve in the second set, although Pliskova was always in control.
Earlier in the day, it was confirmed that Kei Nishikori will face Grigor Dimitrov in the men's final on Sunday. The former, seeded third for this event, continued his excellent form with a 7-6 (3), 6-3 win over Stan Wawrinka, while the latter upset top seed and defending champion Milos Raonic, 7-6 (7), 6-2.
Here are the results from another pulsating day down under and a closer look at some of the fascinating contests played out.
| (3) Karolina Pliskova bt. Alize Cornet | 6-0, 6-3 |
| (3) Kei Nishikori bt. (2) Stan Wawrinka | 7-6 (3), 6-3 |
| (7) Grigor Dimitrov bt. (1) Milos Raonic | 7-6 (7), 6-2 |
Saturday Recap
Ranked as the 41st best player in the women's game by the WTA, Cornet was always going to be a big underdog for glory in Brisbane, Australia, and the pressure of playing in her first final for almost a year seemed to inhibit the Frenchwoman.
Meanwhile, Pliskova seemed at ease and immediately got stuck into her opponent's hesitant serve with an early break. From there, the Czech star took over, keeping Cornet pinned back with some smart serving and ingenuity in general play.
In the end, the 6-0 scoreline in favour of the third seed was a fair reflection of Pliskova's resounding dominance.
Per the WTA Insider Twitter feed, it was a remarkably lopsided set of tennis:
As we can see courtesy of the WTA Twitter account, Pliskova was producing some sensational shots:
Cornet could have easily crumbled after the opener, although she did hold her nerve to take the first game of the second set. However, Pliskova continued to dictate points and grabbed a break of serve at the next opportunity.
While she gallantly battled to get back into the match, from that point on, Cornet never looked in danger of troubling her opponent. Pliskova continued to be imperious on serve and was able to enjoy what will surely be one of the most comfortable final wins of her career.
Earlier on in the day, the Brisbane crowd were treated to some fascinating matches in the men's semi-finals, especially the clash between Nishikori and Wawrinka.
The pair were so evenly matched throughout the first set, with neither man dropping a game on serve. It was a tiebreak that eventually separated them, with Nishikori taking a set point at the third time of asking.
With a draining clash with Kyle Edmund in his legs from Friday, Wawrinka looked a little jaded in the second stanza, allowing a much fresher Nishikori to seize the initiative. After breaking the Swiss to go 4-2 ahead in the second, the result never looked to be in doubt.
Per the event's Twitter feed, both men were pleased with their respective efforts following the contest:
It's Dimitrov, not Raonic, whom the Japanese will meet in the final, as the Bulgarian's impressive beginning to 2017 continued here.
Like the previous semi-final, there was very little to split the two men in a tight opener. A tiebreak followed, and Dimitrov had to dig deep to win it, saving a set point for the Canadian and then going on to win it himself.
It proved to be a pivotal point in the match as Raonic's levels noticeably dropped as the second set got going.
All credit must go to Dimitrov, though, as he produced some of the best tennis seen from him in a long time to secure his place in the final, romping to a 6-2 scoreline in the second stanza.
After an inconsistent 2016, including some disappointing performances in the Grand Slam events, he looks ready to challenge for the big prizes again this season.
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