Stefani's duo beats Olympic champions and advances to the semis in Beijing

The pair of Brazilian tennis player Luisa Stefani and Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski secured their presence in the semifinals of the WTA 1000 in Beijing (China). This Thursday (8), they defeated the current Olympic champions, the Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini, by 2 sets to 0, with partials of 7/5 and 7/6 (8/6).

Number 3 in the world, Stefani's partnership returns to the court next Saturday (10) against Belgian Elise Mertens and Russian Diana Shnaider (seeded 6). The departure time remains undefined.

"Very happy with the victory. They are a great pair and it was a high level game. I really respect the way they play, how they behave, how they deal with everything, they are very representative. It was fun sharing the court with them, it was a great game, a kind of cat and mouse, chess game. We were happy to have finished in two sets", celebrated Stefani.

Stefani and Dabrowski debuted in Beijing with a victory over hosts Qianhui Tang and Yifan Xu, with a double 6/4. They then eliminated the partnership between North American Quinn Gleason and Norwegian Ulrike Eikeri in the round of 16, also by 2 sets to 0.

Already qualified for the WTA Finals – a tournament in November with the eight best couples of the season – the Brazil-Canada pair won four titles this year – WTA 1000 in Dubai, WTA 500 in Strasbourg and the WTA 250 Eastbourne (England) and SP Open – and runner-up in the Wimbledon Tournament.