Former US Open champion Samantha Stosur of Australia swept aside American teenager Madison Keys in straight sets to advance to the Japan Women's Open final in Osaka on Saturday. Third-seeded Stosur, aiming for her second title this year and fifth of her career, needed just over an hour to defeat the number six seed Keys 6-1, 6-2 at the Utsubo Tennis Center.
Stosur, the 2009 Osaka champion, will look to regain the title in Sunday's final against another up-and-coming teenager, Eugenie Bouchard of Canada. Sixth seed Bouchard advanced to her first WTA final with an equally dominant 6-2, 6-2 victory over unseeded Japanese wild card Kurumi Nara. The 29-year-old Stosur faced only three break points against Keys - all in the fifth game of the first set. She came back from 0-40 to go up 4-1, then broke the 18-year-old for the second time before serving out the set.