Caroline Wozniacki and Madison Keys reach Volvo Car Open final

Madison Keys and Caroline Wozniacki (photos by Daniel Ward)

On a damp, sometimes rainy, sometimes chilly, day on Daniel Island, Caroline Wozniacki and Madison Keys advanced to the final of the Volvo Car Open. The two finalists are seeded 5 and 8 respectively, and they have both reached the final of the event in the past. Wozniacki was the runner-up in 2009, and the champion in 2011. Keys was the runner-up in 2015.

In the day's first semifinal, a sometimes physically-challenged Petra Martic faced a very in-form Wozniacki. And while the scoreline of that match was 6-3, 6-4--straight sets--the quality of play from both women was very high. There was some creative shot-making, which made for a crowd-pleasing match.

The second match was interrupted by rain in the middle of the first set, which was quite competitive. After the rain delay, however, it was all about Madison Keys, as her opponent, Monica Puig, struggled to find the level of play that had gotten her to the semifinals. Also, in the second set, Keys revved up her own level of play.

Keys hit nine aces, and had first and second serve win percentages of 76 and 58. She defeated Puig 6-4, 6-0.

clockwise from upper let: Petra Martic, Monica Puig, Madison Keys, Caroline Wozniacki (photos by Daniel Ward)

Wozniacki and Keys have never before faced each other on a clay court. They have, in fact, played each other only twice, both times on hard courts (and not since 2017), and Wozniacki won both of those matches in straight sets.

Paths to the final:

CAROLINE WOZNIACKI (5)
round 1--bye
round 2--def. Laura Siegemund
round 3--def. Mihaela Buzarnescu (12)
quarterfinals--def. Maria Sakkari (15)
semifinals--def. Petra Martic (16)

MADISON KEYS (8)
round 1--bye
round 2--def. Tatjana Maria
round 3--def. Alona Ostapenko (10)
quarterfinals--def. Sloane Stephens (1)
semifinals--def. Monica Puig