Leylah Fernandez of Canada staged a composed comeback to defeat Kamilla Rakhimova 7-5, 6-3 in the Pan Pacific Open semifinal in Tokyo on 31 October 2026, booking her place in her third WTA final of the year. In the other semifinal, Diana Shnaider edged past teenage wild card Mia Pohankova 6-4, 7-6 (7) to set up a blockbuster WTA 500 title clash on Saturday.

Fernandez's Fightback Against Rakhimova

The match lasted one hour and 54 minutes, and Fernandez was tested in both sets before finding her best tennis. She fell behind 1-3 in the opening set after losing serve in the third game, but responded by breaking back in the sixth game to level at 3-3. The set remained on serve until the 12th game, when the Canadian forced the decisive break to close it out 7-5 in 59 minutes.

The second set offered a similarly rocky start — Fernandez immediately dropped serve in the opening game. She responded again, breaking Rakhimova in the fourth game to restore parity at 2-2, before earning another break to lead 5-3 and serving out the set in 49 minutes. Notably, Rakhimova had beaten Fernandez just three weeks earlier, making the result a meaningful reversal.

'Yes, I mean it was a very tough match. She beat me three weeks ago. She played an incredible match then, and she still played an incredible match now,' Fernandez said in her on-court interview. She credited the crowd's energy for helping her stay composed through the difficult spells, adding: 'I'm just happy the way that I stayed composed at least for the most part of the match and of course used the energy from the crowd to help me.'

Fernandez's Strong Asian Swing in 2026

This is Fernandez's third WTA final appearance in the current season. She won the Singapore Open in September, defeating Talia Gibson in the final, but fell to Elena Rybakina in the Ningbo Open final last week. The Tokyo final gives her another opportunity to convert a run into a title on the Asian swing.

Shnaider Survives Scare From Teen Pohankova

Diana Shnaider required one hour and 46 minutes to see off wild card Mia Pohankova in a testing two-set encounter. The Russian dropped serve in the third game of the first set but clawed it back in the eighth game before breaking again to take the set 6-4. The second set was even closer — Shnaider had to save a set point in the tie-break before winning it 9-7 to advance.

'It's never easy on this stage, one step away from the final. She's definitely a special talent, you know, 18 years old, so for sure future career ahead of her. But yeah, very happy to be in the first final of my season,' Shnaider said after the win, describing the Tokyo appearance as 'definitely special.'

What to Expect in Saturday's Final

The WTA 500 Pan Pacific Open title will be contested between two players who both had to fight back from early-set deficits in their respective semifinals — an encouraging sign for quality in the final. For Fernandez, a win would mean her second title of the Asian swing; for Shnaider, it would be her first WTA title of the season. The match is scheduled for Saturday in Tokyo.