Petra Kvitova beats Madison Keys for a spot in Western & Southern Open final

MASON, Ohio ‒ Petra Kvitova was on her way to the Lindner Family Tennis Center on Saturday for a semifinal match against Madison Keys when Kvitova reminded herself of something that’s stuck with her after 11 appearances at the Western & Southern Open.

“I was telling myself that I have never been here in the final," said Kvitova. "I had many, many finals but never here. So finally it's here."

For her first Cincinnati final, Kvitova needed a three-set comeback to beat Keys, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-3, clinching a spot in her 40^th WTA final.

"I have no idea how I came back," Kvitova said. "... But I came back somehow."

The emotion of reaching the final at this tournament, one that had eluded the 32-year-old for a decade, caught up with her after the match.

"I'm quite emotional person sometimes, as well. It definitely was happy tears. Kind of relief as well, probably," she said.

It's an impressive run Kvitova's put together considering she faced a match point in her first-round match and survived.

"Sometimes it can happen," said Kvitova of her near early exit in the tournament. "It's like a second chance or that you are almost gone and now you are still here and playing in the draw.

"Yeah, I'm glad that this happened to me. I don't think that it's ever happened to me, so actually, that's nice to have this experience even in my age," she smiled.

This is one of the gifts of tennis, Kvitova said, that week to week there are new opportunities to find the right rhythm, string some wins together, and do something you've never done before.

"Every week you have a new chance to do well," Kvitova said. "

Kvitova will meet the winner of No. 6 Aryna Sabalenka and qualifier Carolina Garcia in Sunday's W&S Open final. Whoever she faces, "It will be fun one, for sure. It will be big hitting, tomorrow."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Petra Kvitova beats Madison Keys for a spot in Western & Southern Open final