Samantha Stosur has reached her first tennis final since last October, setting up a title decider against Victoria Azarenka.
Preparing for the US Open, Stosur defeated France’s Virginie Razzano 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 in her semi-final at the WTA tournament in Carlsbad, California on Saturday.
It followed the Australian’s impressive quarter-final win over world No.4 Agnieszka Radwanska a day earlier.
However fifth seed Stosur faces a big task in Sunday’s final against two-time reigning Australian Open champion Azarenka who will return to world No.2 status after her semi-final win over Ana Ivanovic 6-0 4-6 6-3.
Azarenka won her 28th straight outdoor match, a run which also includes three injury withdrawals at Brisbane and Indian Wells this season and Tokyo last autumn.
After an indifferent season, Stosur has hit form at a good time in the US hardcourt season, heading toward the US Open where she won her maiden grand slam title in 2011 and reached the quarter-finals last year.