Katie Boulter run ends with defeat by former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin in WTA Tokyo semi-finals

Katie Boutler was beaten in straight sets in the semi-finals of the Japan Open by Sofia Kenin, with the Briton missing out on a shot at what could have been her third title of the season. Kenin, the former Australian Open champion, came through 6-4 6-4 in an hour and a half, and she will face Olympic champion and Australian Open finalist Zheng Qinwen in the final in Tokyo.

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Katie Boulter missed out on a shot at a third title of the year as she was beaten in straight sets by Sofia Kenin in the semi-finals of the Japan Open.

Boulter, currently ranked world No. 33, will regardless move into the world's top 30 despite her last-four defeat, where she succumbed 6-4 6-4 to the former Australian Open champion in 90 minutes.

The Briton had her serve breached twice in the opening set, but clawed one back as the American wild card served for the set. However, the momentum swing was only temporary as Kenin clung on to seize first blood.

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Boulter, the ninth seed, battled back in the second, intensifying the pressure at 3-3 with four break-point opportunities, but she couldn't convert any of them. She would be left to rue those missed chances, with Kenin breaking in the following game to go up 4-3, and serving it out to reach the final.

The American will face Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in Sunday's showpiece, after the Australian Open finalist overcame Diana Shnaider, the sixth seed, 7-6(5) 6-3.

Boulter can look back at her Tokyo tournament with pride, however, having arrived in the Japanese capital without consecutive wins since the Toronto Masters back in August.

The 28-year-old comprehensively dispatched former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu in the quarter-finals, having previously navigated tricky ties against Priscilla Hon and home hope Kyoka Okamura.

For Kenin, her Tokyo run also represents a welcome return to form after winning just three matches across eight tournaments since the start of Wimbledon, and with her 2024 season win/loss percentage standing at a lowly 37.5%.

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