The early round action at WTA Monterrey, the Abierto GNP Seguros has lead to a pair of compelling semifinals on Friday. Diane Parry from France will take on seed Ann Li, while the rising Nikola Bartunkova takes on the tournament favorite, Elise Mertens.
Elise Mertens into WTA Monterrey Semifinals
The late-night quarterfinal at WTA Monterrey saw Mertens power past Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-1 6-4, as she dominated on her service games and didn’t face a single break point. Mertens needed three sets to get past Panna Udvardy in the previous round, similarly performing better on serve.
Mertens, 30, is nearing her second consecutive season of 30+ match wins and has put together her best result this week since the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. With the US Open draw already made, Mertens is set to face Kaitlin Quevedo in the first round, and could face Naomi Osaka in round 3.
Bartunkova, Li, and Parry Complete Semifinal Lineup in Monterrey
The semifinal field at WTA Monterrey was completed on Thursday. Diane Parry scored a slight upset over Clara Tauson 6-3 7-5, converting all of her break point chances in the match. Parry has a chance to reach a career high ranking this week inside the top 50. Her semifinal opponent is Ann Li from the United States, Li, 26, finally advanced her record above 500 this season by dispatching her fellow American Alycia Parks 6-2 6-3. Li only needed two wins to reach the semis this week as she was granted a walkover in the round of 16. It’s her best result since Strasbourg on clay in May, which also happened a week before a Grand Slam. Both sets of semifinals are matchups where there is h2h history.
20-year-old Nikola Bartunkova will be the opponent for the tactically minded Mertens. She’s battled past consecutive three setters this week, defeating En Shuo Liang and qualifier Darja Vidmanova to reach the semifinals. This is her first year fully active on the WTA Tour and her best WTA level result. She reached the final of the Birmingham 125 in June.
Both of Bartunkova’s WTA semifinals have come in Mexico, as she was a standout in Guadalajara in 2025. With that, the stage is set for three more thrilling singles matches in Monterrey, with the final scheduled for Saturday.
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
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