Sakkari Beats Pohankova 6-1, 6-4 to Reach Wuhan Quarterfinals

By Taki Panos

Rain in Wuhan held everybody up on Thursday morning. Once the covers came off, Maria Sakkari did not waste much more of anyone's time. The Greek beat 17-year-old wildcard Mia Pohankova 6-1, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 event in China, as Athens Voice reported, after a weather delay that Gazzetta had flagged before the start. It was a tidy, professional win against a teenager who had already knocked out two more experienced players this week.

For readers just catching up, Wuhan is one of the big WTA 1000 stops on the Asian swing, and Sakkari came in unseeded, according to the official draw. She opened with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Donna Vekic, then came from a set down to beat eighth seed Marta Kostyuk 4-6, 6-2, 6-2, a result Skai and Philenews both reported. Skai noted that Kostyuk was ranked 10th in the world at the time. Beating a Top 10 player and then handling a dangerous teenager is the kind of week Sakkari has been chasing.

Pohankova was no pushover on paper, even at No. 202 in the world, the ranking Skai listed. The Slovak entered on a wildcard, beat Anhelina Bondar 6-1, 6-3 in the first round, per the WTA draw, and then outlasted China's Wang Xiyu 7-6 (2), 6-7 (7), 6-1 in nearly three hours, Newsit reported. Philenews wrote that it was her first time reaching this stage of a WTA 1000 event, and Šport.sk said the run should lift her to Slovak No. 1 for the first time in her career.

The first set was close to a clinic. Sakkari held to start, broke right away and led 3-0, Šport.sk reported in its point-by-point account, with Pohankova struggling on serve and piling up unforced errors. The Greek moved to 5-0 and had three set points in that game. Pohankova saved all three and held for 1-5, which was a nice show of nerve. Sakkari then served it out, converting her fourth set point when the teenager missed a return, to take the set 6-1. Athens Voice described her as focused and quick to impose her rhythm.

The second set began the same way. Sakkari broke in the opening game, but Pohankova broke straight back for 1-1, according to Šport.sk, and a stretch of break points for both players followed. The Greek had the steadier nerves. She consolidated for 3-1 and soon led 5-1, with the match looking all but finished. Then, to the teenager's real credit, things got interesting. Pohankova started swinging more freely off both wings and got back to 2-5. That is the part of a match where a younger player can either fade or find something.

She found something. Pohankova broke Sakkari to love and then held to make it 4-5, Šport.sk reported, so the Greek had to serve it out with the pressure suddenly very real. The final game went to deuce, and Pohankova saved two match points along the way. On the third, after an exchange at the net, the Slovak's shot landed just out, and Sakkari closed it 6-4. Sportnet and Tennis Tonic carried the same 6-1, 6-4 scoreline. Good teams close out matches when they are wobbling. So do good players.

The bigger picture in Wuhan makes this quarterfinal even more interesting. The draw has lost its two biggest names. Top seed Aryna Sabalenka went out in the second round to Ann Li, who won 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) on her 10th match point, the WTA reported and BBC Sport also covered. Second seed Jessica Pegula is gone as well, beaten by Jelena Ostapenko, who saved three match points, the WTA reported, and AP also listed both upsets. When the favorites fall early, the players who keep winning quietly suddenly have a real chance.

There is some history here too. Sakkari's best run in Wuhan came in 2017, when she reached the semifinals, Tennis Tonic noted, a run also recorded in the 2017 draw. A lot has happened in her career since then, including a career-high ranking of No. 3 in the world, which Šport.sk mentioned in its report, and some long stretches of frustrating results. A deep run in the same city nine years later would be a nice way to close the loop. Tennis does not always reward patience, but now and then it does.

Next up is a quarterfinal against either Iva Jovic or Maja Chwalinska, who were scheduled to meet in their own round of 16 match on Thursday, according to the WTA order of play. Jovic, the 18-year-old American and No. 10 seed, beat Dayana Yastremska 6-4, 6-1 after a first-round bye, the WTA wrote, while Chwalinska, the No. 16 seed from Poland, came back after losing the first set to beat Marie Bouzkova 1-6, 6-1, 6-1. "She's had an incredible year and a big breakthrough," Jovic said of her opponent, per the WTA. Either way, Sakkari will face a player in form.

For Greek tennis fans, it has been a week of mixed news from China. Stefanos Tsitsipas reached the fourth round of the Shanghai Masters before Daniil Medvedev ended his run 6-4, 7-5. Sakkari now carries the Greek flag into the last eight in Wuhan, where the tournament runs through October 18, according to the WTA. It is a reminder that a strong week on the Asian swing can still reshape the end of a season. The head-to-head with Pohankova now stands at 1-0, Tennis Tonic noted, and the teenager will surely be back.

My take: this was the kind of match Sakkari has sometimes let slip in the past, a big favorite against a fearless kid with nothing to lose. She was ruthless early and a little shaky late, and she still got it done in straight sets. That matters. The win over Kostyuk showed the fight, and this one showed the composure. With Sabalenka and Pegula already gone, I would not call her the favorite, but I would not want to see her name across the net either.

The quarterfinal is the next test, and it should tell us a lot about how far this run can go. For more Greek tennis, football, basketball and everything in between, keep an eye on our Greek Sports section. Rain delays and all, Sakkari is still standing in Wuhan.

Sources: Athens Voice, Gazzetta, Šport.sk, Sportnet, Tennis Tonic, WTA, BBC Sport, AP, Skai, Philenews, Newsit.

Image: Flag of Greece, via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).