Johanna Konta reaches final of China Open and breaks into world top 10

BySportsbeat

Updated 08/10/2016 at 13:18 GMT

Johanna Konta is the first British woman to break into the top 10 of the world rankings in 32 years after beating Madison Keys to reach the final of the China Open.

Johanna Konta - Beijing Open

Image credit: Imago

The British number one defeated the American 7-6 (7-1) 4-6 6-4 in a semi-final lasting two hours and 35 minutes.

The 25-year-old took the first set after a tie-break, having lost three games in a row when leading 4-2.

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Eighth-seeded Keys battled back in the second to take the tie to a decider, but Konta immediately responded in the third and final set to seal her spot in the final.

The Brit will now face Ukraine's Elina Svitolina or Poland's Agnieska Radwanska in the final, and becomes only the fourth British woman to make the top 10 since WTA rankings were first established in 1975, joining Jo Durie, Virginia Wade and Sue Barker. "It's really special, I feel very blessed to be coming back for the final," she said.

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