Liudmila Samsonova of Russia competes during the women's singles semifinal at China Open tennis tournament in Beijing, capital of China, Oct 7, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - Unseeded Liudmila Samsonova will take on world No 2 Iga Swiatek in the women's final of the China Open after she beat Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina 7-6 (7), 6-3 here on Saturday.

The Russian, ranked 22nd in the WTA tour, held her nerve after a hard-won first set and broke Rybakina twice in the second set to seal the match, representing her fourth straight win over the world No 5.

In Sunday's final, Samsonova promised to play aggressively against Poland's Swiatek, who beat world No 3 Coco Gauff of the United States 6-2, 6-3 in the other semifinal.

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"I think my serve and return will be the key tomorrow because she plays very aggressive on the first shot," Samsonova said.

"I will try to push hard as I did all these matches here, to be really, really aggressive," she added.