Katie Boulter faced a tough defeat in the semi-finals of the Japan Open, marking her first match since reclaiming the British number one spot from Sonny Kartal. After Kartal's impressive run to the final in last week's Wuhan Open, she briefly surpassed Boulter in the world rankings.

Despite this setback, Boulter's journey to the semi-finals in Osaka, which included a notable victory over Antonia Ruzic in the quarter-finals, positions her to reclaim her ranking over Kartal in the upcoming updates.

In the semi-final clash, Boulter, seeded eighth, struggled against Katerina Siniakova, the world number one in doubles, ultimately losing 6-1, 6-4.

• Boulter rallied after a challenging first set, even going a break up at the start of the second.
• However, Siniakova, also 30, countered effectively, securing two crucial breaks to close out the match in 85 minutes.

Siniakova's victory sets her up for a final showdown against Ashlyn Krueger, the 2023 champion, who triumphed over top seed Ann Li with a scoreline of 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3.