The knockout round for Group 1 is beginning to take shape at the Fage WTA Finals in Indian Wells. With a straight set loss to Jess Pegula, Marta Kostyuk was eliminated from the tournament. Linda Noskova, the only player with two wins, has booked her ticket into the semifinal. Which of the two remaining Americans will stand alongside her will be determined Thursday.
In the round robin, any set could make the difference, so Pegula had a little extra motivation trying to close out the second set for her 6-2 7-5 win over Kostyuk. The American told reporters: “I definitely didn’t want to give away that second set. In general, I wouldn’t want to, but I think it was a bit of an extra push to be able to give myself the best chance in this group, considering that I did lose the first match.”
After a tough three set loss Sunday, the 32-year-old was relieved to get the result she thought reflects how she is playing. The fifth seed told reporters: “Any sort of win, I will take. It was a tough match against Coco, but I thought I played really high-level, and so to be able to come out a few days later and still give myself a chance to be in this tournament, great feeling.”
Kostyuk, who made her Top 10 debut this year and entered the tournament as an alternate, will have to get back on the court for the third round. After two losses, she knows her fate already, but will make the most of the unique experience. The Ukrainian told the media: “I’m just trying to enjoy my last match on Thursday, and then hopefully will give myself some space to appreciate the whole year and just live through some moments again, and just kind of close the chapter.”
Linda Noskova secured her semifinal berth with a commanding 6-3 6-3 victory over local favorite Coco Gauff.
The Wimbledon champion had nothing but respect for her opponent, telling the media: “Coco, she’s a tricky player. Anything can happen. She’s definitely a big fighter. I had to play since the beginning till the very last match point. I was just focusing.”
Slowing down was part of how she managed to lock in on the critical points. The Czech explained to reporters after: “I tried to take a little bit more time between points, which I don’t normally do because I like to play fast, I like to rush a little bit sometimes. But when I know I have to focus that the next point is the most important one in the game or in the whole set in general, I just focus on my technique, focus on the placement of the ball.”
The American was frustrated with her performance, reflecting: “I was just going overhitting more than I needed to. Then actually I started to go a little bit more placement serving towards the end of the second, and I was holding much easier. But at that time, I was already down a break, so it’s a little bit too late.”
Asked about the round robin structure, where not only match wins but set wins become part of the calculation, the 22-year-old gave a cryptic response. For background, the 2027 Finals will be played in a basketball arena that the WTA announced it only has booked for five days. Gauff told the media: “If I win my match tomorrow and I still don’t qualify, or whenever I play, it’s OK, it’s cool. But you know, next year, I’m looking forward to next year. I can’t say much, but yeah, everybody knows it has to change.” She did not elaborate, but the WTA will have to make changes to fit the shorter schedule.
