Putintseva to play Zidansek in Nuremberg Cup final

NUREMBERG, Germany (AP) — Top-seeded Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan will face Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek in the Nuremberg Cup final on Saturday.

Putintseva, whose quarterfinal against Anna-Lena Friedsam lasted a season-longest 3 hours, 21 minutes on Thursday, converted her first match point to beat Romania’s Sorana Cirstea 6-4, 7-5 in the last four on Friday.

Zidansek upset the second-seeded Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic 7-6 (4), 6-2 in the second semifinal at the clay-court tournament.

Putintseva, who lost finals in St. Petersburg (2017) and Guangzhou (2018), is bidding for her first WTA singles title. The 68th-ranked Zidansek will also be going for her first win.