QUEBEC CITY -- American Bethanie Mattek will finish her breakthrough year on a high by appearing in her first WTA Tour final against Russian favorite Nadia Petrova at the Bell Challenge on Sunday.
The sixth-seeded Mattek ended the local hopes of fifth-seeded Aleksandra Wozniak 7-6 (4), 6-3 in Saturday's semifinals, while top-seeded Petrova defeated first-time tour semifinalist Angela Haynes of the United States 6-1, 6-3.
Petrova, who hasn't dropped a set this week, will meet Mattek for the first time.
Petrova, a top-10 fixture for most of the last four years, will be playing in her fourth final this year, hoping to add to the Cincinnati title she won in August.
Mattek was ranked 153rd in April, then suddenly turned around her middling career in a two-month winning binge from May-July, including qualifying for the French Open and reaching the second round, reaching the grass semifinals at Birmingham, the fourth round of Wimbledon, and the semifinals at Los Angeles, after which she made her top-50 debut.
Then a back injury hampered her late summer schedule, and this week was her first tournament since the U.S. Open.
