Watson to face off against Flipkens in Monterrey final

Britain’s Heather Watson will play Belgium’s Kirsten Flipkens in the final of the WTA event in Monterrey, Mexico, on Sunday.

Watson advanced to the final by beating France’s Caroline Garcia, the No. 5 seed, 61, 62 in the semifinals on Saturday, while Flipkens booked her spot in the championship match with a hardfought 76 (86), 64 win over Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit.

The 23yearold Watson, who is ranked 84th in the world, has been on a tear in Monterrey, upsetting secondseeded Dane Caroline Wozniacki 75, 64 on Friday to reach the semis.

The British No. 2 broke Garcia five times in a dominating performance.

The 30yearold Flipkens took advantage of Kontaveit’s poor service game, attacking constantly and keeping the Estonian on the run.

Flipkens, the world No. 73, upset British No. 4 seed Johanna Konta to reach the semis.

European players have dominated at the Monterrey Open, with France’s Marion Bartoli winning the title in 2009; Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova taking home the trophy in 2010, 2011 and 2013; Hungary’s Timea Babos winning in 2012; Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic grabbing the championship in 2014; and Switzerland’s Timea Bacsinszky winning in 2015.