Shelby Rogers & Anhelina Kalinina Advance to Singles Final at Dow Tennis Classic

MIDLAND, Michigan, February 9, 2020 – The 2020 Dow Tennis Classic singles final is set, with Shelby Rogers and Anhelina Kalinina advancing to the title match.

In the first semifinal of the day it was No. 7 seed Anhelina Kalinina taking on American Jamie Loeb. Kalinina wasted no time at all, breaking Loeb three times to take the opening set 6-0 in 18 minutes. In the second set it was much of the same story, with the Ukrainian storming to a 6-0, 6-1 win.  

"Just try to play every point and I'm really happy to close the match faster," said Kalinina. "I am just trying to relax, and depending on who I will play we will make some strategy."

In the first featured evening match, Shelby Rogers took on fellow American Irina Falconi. The No. 6 seed was able to hang tight with the wild card, taking the late break and closing out the opening set 7-5. In the second set, the two continued to play long baseline rallies, where it would ultimately go to a tiebreak with Rogers closing out the match 7-5, 7-6(4).

"All the matches are really tough. Any title you can get no matter what level, is an amazing accomplishment," said Rogers. "I try not to put too much pressure on myself, but just enjoying the moment and getting time on court again is amazing."

In the doubles final, it was the No. 1 seeds of Caroline Dolehide and Maria Sanchez taking on No. 2 seeds Valeria Savinykh and Yanina Wickmayer. Dolehide and Sanchez took home their first title as a team, defeating the No. 2 seeds 6-3, 6-4. 

Championship Sunday gets underway at 1:00 p.m. with Shelby Rogers and Anhelina Kalinina battling it out for the title. This will be the second meeting between the two, with Kalinina winning their only other meeting in 2015.

Tickets to the singles final start at just $10 for juniors (age 6-18) and $15 for adults. Tickets are available by calling the Greater Midland Tennis Center at (989) 631-6151 or by visiting bit.ly/DTC20-Tickets.

The Dow Tennis Classic, a $100,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, will be held at the Greater Midland Tennis Center, February 3-9. Professional athletes from around the world will be competing for $100,000 in prize money, as well as valuable WTA Tour Ranking points. The singles final can be seen on Tennis Channel and all matches can be seen on Tennis Channel Plus or at procircuit.usta.com.

Photo Credit: Adam Ferman (Please Request High-Res Photo)