Elena Rybakina is through to her second final of the year after upsetting world number one Iga Swiatek 6-2 6-2 in Friday's Indian Wells Open semi-final.
Rybakina, 25, added to her terrific recent head-to-head record against the 21-year-old Polish superstar, now with three consecutive straight sets victories since December.
The reigning Wimbledon champion, who became Kazakhstan's first grand slam winner, was all over Swiatek's serve from the jump.
The top seed ended up winning just 42 per cent (18-of-43) of her total service points, with Rybakina converting all five of her break point opportunities.
After taking the opening frame, Rybakina slammed the door shut by running out to a 5-0 lead in the second, hitting five aces in the set while Swiatek had just one for the match.
Rybakina will next face world number two Aryna Sabalenka in the decider after the Belarusian made similar light work of world number seven Maria Sakkari.
Sabalenka, who has dropped only one set en route to the final, needed just 85 minutes to advance 6-2 6-3. She created 10 break point opportunities compared to Sakkari's four, with the Greek talent not able to pull another rabbit out of the hat after four consecutive three-set victories.
It will be the sixth overall meeting between Rybakina and Sabalenka, and a rematch from the Australian Open final, when Sabalenka took it 4-6 6-3 6-4 to extend her head-to-head advantage to 4-1.
Nadal crashes out of Italian Open with straight-sets defeat to Hurkacz
Rafael Nadal is out of the Italian Open after he was defeated in straight sets by Hubert Hurkacz in Rome on Saturday.
Nadal is a 10-time Italian Open champion, but his chances of an 11th and likely final title in Rome were ended in ruthless fashion by Hurkacz, who dominated on his way to a comfortable 6-1 6-3 triumph.
While Nadal held in his first service game of the second-round match, Hurkacz quickly took over and broke his 37-year-old opponent twice as he controlled the opening set.
Nadal showed some resolve in the second set, but a break of his serve in the third game left him with an uphill battle.
World number nine Hurkacz was in charge, and it was a position of control he would not relinquish as he broke Nadal once more to clinch victory.
Hurkacz will now take on Tomas Martin Etcheverry as he bids to reach the fourth round for the maiden time in Rome. For Nadal, who has indicated he will retire after the 2024 season, this will not have been how he wished to bow out in Rome as he prepares for the start of the French Open later this month.
Data debrief
Hurkacz became just the third player to concede fewer than five games en route to victory over Nadal on clay at ATP level, along with Olivier Rochus (Mallorca round of 16 2002) and Gaston Gaudio (Hamburg round of 16 2003).
Hurkacz dominated his contest with Nadal, winning all eight of his service games and breaking the 22-time grand slam champion on four occasions as he eased into the fourth round.
Swiatek into fourth round in Rome with Putintseva win
Iga Swiatek progressed to the fourth round of the Italian Open by overcoming Yulia Putintseva on Saturday, fighting back from 4-1 down in the second set for a 6-3 6-4 win.
The world number one needed one hour and 47 minutes to see off Putintseva, who gave Swiatek her toughest test yet in Rome, finding success with a series of drop shots to build a healthy lead in the second set.
However, Swiatek fended off four break points to avoid going 5-1 down then produced back-to-back breaks as the momentum shifted, with Putintseva having no answer for her power from there.
Swiatek – who is looking to build on last week's triumph at the Madrid Open – will now face either Angelique Kerber or Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the last 16 on Monday.
Data Debrief: No stopping Swiatek
While Swiatek was tested on Saturday, it was an examination she passed with flying colours as she made it 25 straight clay-court wins against opponents ranked outside the world's top 10.
She is the first player on the WTA Tour to achieve that feat since Serena Williams did so in 2016.
Djokovic 'fine' after being hit by water bottle at Italian Open
Novak Djokovic says he is "fine" after being hit on the head by a water bottle while signing autographs following his win at the Italian Open.
A video on social media showed Djokovic being hit by the object from the stands before falling to the floor.
The Serbian was helped out of the arena by security so he could receive medical treatment.
Djokovic later posted a message on X to assuage any fears, and thank fans for their support after the incident.
He said: "Thank you for the messages of concern. This was an accident and I am fine resting at the hotel with an ice pack. See you all on Sunday."
A statement from the Italian Open said: "Novak Djokovic has been accidentally hit by a bottle while signing autographs.
"This is not being treated as a deliberate act, but as an accident. A boy was calling out to get an autograph and the bottle fell out of his bag. Novak has been taken to the medical centre."
They later issued an update, which read: "Novak has undergone the necessary checks and has already left to return to his hotel. His condition is not a cause for concern."
The incident happened after Djokovic’s 6-3 6-1 win over Corentin Moutet when he approached supporters in the stands.
The world number one is due to play Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo in the next round on Sunday.
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