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Elise Mertens SHOCKS Angelique Kerber at 2019 Qatar Total Open

By Harry Floyd

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 19: Elise Mertens of Belgium serves in her third round match against Madison Keys of the United States during day six of the 2019 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 19, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 19: Elise Mertens of Belgium serves in her third round match against Madison Keys of the United States during day six of the 2019 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 19, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images) /
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Elise Mertens is a winner yet again at the 2019 Qatar Total Open. This time, she has advanced herself into the finals for a shot at the title.

Belgium’s Elise Mertens continues a stellar run of tennis this month at the 2019 Qatar Total Open. She completes a highly unexpected upset over former world number one and the third seeded Angelique Kerber in the Qatar semifinals. Taking the German veteran to three sets, Mertens rose to the occasion, winning the third set with poise.

Mertens cruised through Kerber to close out their semifinals match. She wins, knocking out the third seed with an impressive 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 victory.

Up next for Mertens is another major test with the tournament’s top seed. We have continued to cover the Qatar Total Open and have viewed Simona Halep as the favorite to win. She defeats Ukrainian tennis star and WTA Finals champion Elina Svitolina in their semifinals meeting. Now, it is Halep and Mertens for the title.

While the edge remains in favor of the Romanian great, Mertens is playing fantastically. She had not dropped a single set until her meeting with Kerber. And even then, when Kerber challenged the young Belgian, Mertens dug deep and roared back with ease in the final set.

Look for Mertens to also challenge Halep next. The top seeded Halep remains our pick to win the 2019 Qatar Total Open but it is difficult to entirely count Mertens out with the way she’s been playing. A win over Halep would do wonders for the young WTA Tour star moving forward.

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Currently, Elise Mertens is the world number 12 in women’s singles tennis. At just 23-years-old, she is one of several young rising stars on the WTA Tour. Her current ranking is her best yet and we may very well see her crack the WTA Top 10 next. Merterns has four WTA singles titles to her name, three of which came just last year on tour. She is without a doubt someone to watch this year, especially if she can complete the dream run she’s on right now in Doha.

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