QUEBEC CITY, Canada - No.5 seed Sofia Kenin needed just 55 minutes to book a spot in the second WTA semifinal of her season and career on Friday afternoon, as the American teenager defeated No.3 seed Monica Puig, 6-3, 6-1.
Kenin previously advanced to the final four of the Mallorca Open in June as a qualifier, when she scored her first-ever Top 10 victory over top seed Caroline Garcia en route before falling to eventual champion Tatjana Maria.
Kenin served six aces and lost just six points on serve in the victory, never facing break point over the course of the contest.
On return, the American has ample success on Puig's second serve, allowing the Puerto Rican to go just 8-for-21 on points when she hit one, and went 4-for-5 on break points overall.
"Monica is a tough player. It was obviously tough in the first set but I felt like I really had to play well to win," Kenin said after the match.
"By the score, it may seem it was easy, but every point was hard, and I have a lot of respect for her. She's been there, and she's really tough to play."
Semi-finals 🔜@SonyaKenin #CoupeBN pic.twitter.com/tC2rmvaHbs
— CoupeBanqueNationale (@CoupeBN) September 14, 2018
The American is in a different position this week in Quebec as the World No.67 and No.5 seed, as she is now the highest-seeded player remaining in the draw.
The 19-year-old will next take on qualifier and compatriot Jessica Pegula, who put an end to the seven-match winning streak of Oracle Challenger Series Chicago champion and No.2 seed Petra Martic, 6-3, 7-5.
"I'm just going to take all three matches that I've done well, serving and playing well," Kenin said of the match. "Hopefully, I can play like that tomorrow, and we'll see how it goes."