BRITON ADVANCES

Dominant Raducanu in Korea Open semis after beating Linette

It is the first time the 19-year-old has won three matches in a row

In Summary

•She will face top seed Jelena Ostapenko, who beat teenager Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva 6-2 6-1, in order to reach the final.

•Raducanu made a strong start, racing into a commanding 4-0 lead, and not dropping a point on her first serve as she easily won the opening set

Britain's Emma Raducanu in action during a past match
Britain's Emma Raducanu in action during a past match
Image: FILE

Great Britain's Emma Raducanu is through to the semi-finals of the Korea Open after beating third seed Magda Linette 6-2 6-2 in Seoul.

It is the first time the 19-year-old has won three matches in a row since her run to the US Open title in 2021. The British number one is yet to drop a set at the WTA tournament.

She will face top seed Jelena Ostapenko, who beat teenager Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva 6-2 6-1, in order to reach the final.

Raducanu made a strong start, racing into a commanding 4-0 lead, and not dropping a point on her first serve as she easily won the opening set.

However, Poland's Linette had three break points on Raducanu's first service game in the second set.

But the former world number 10 reasserted herself, winning five points in a row to hold serve before breaking Linette for a 2-1 lead.

Linette had to take a medical off-court timeout, with Raducanu using the break to practice her serve, and the Briton continued to dominate to establish a 5-1 lead.

Raducanu then served out the match with ease, claiming victory in one hour 16 minutes and leaving the court with a smile and thumbs-up from the fans.

Meanwhile, Chilean tennis coach and former player Sebastián Rivera has been banned from the sport for life after being found guilty of a record 64 offences of match-fixing.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed it was "the highest number ever detected by a player".

The ITIA added that Rivera, 36, "failed to engage meaningfully with the disciplinary process". He was also fined $250,000 (£222,104).

The ruling means that Rivera will be "permanently prohibited from coaching at, playing in, or attending any tennis event authorised or sanctioned by the governing bodies of tennis.

Rules breached by Rivera include soliciting others to wager on the outcome of matches, attempting to contrive the outcome of a match, accepting money with the intention to negatively influence a player's best efforts and offering money with the intention of negatively influencing a player's best efforts.

He reached a career-high 705 in the ATP rankings as a player in September 2009, winning 115 of his 218 matches, but he has not played on the professional circuit since 2017.