Kristina Liutova couldn't quite process it, gripping her head after defeating Elvina Kalieva 7-5, 6-1 to advance to the final of the Memphis Classic on Aug. 1.
The first thing she did was embrace her entire family in the crowd at Leftwich Tennis Center: her mother, father, and younger brother. At 16 years old and in her first WTA tournament, the Russian tennis star will be the youngest to compete in a WTA final since Coco Gauff won the Linz Open in 2019.
"Still processing, honestly. But I felt this coming sooner or later in my career," said Liutova, who will face Darja Vidmanova at 12:30 p.m. CT on Aug. 2. "I trusted the moment. I trusted the fate. And just worked and worked. Nothing else."
There was a swell of jitters and nerves flowing through
her all day, but something she overcame after stepping on to the court.
"It's like usual. Because I expect myself to be this way, I've done so much work. And we've done so much work," Liutova said. "Memphis is great. It's such a great atmosphere. It's a pleasure being here."
Liutova went into this tournament with the outside world having zero expectations for her to reach the final stage. She had outlasted No. 19-ranked Ekaterina Alexandrova on July 29 when Alexandrova collapsed on the court after suffering a heat-related illness.
After that, Liutova took the Memphis Classic by storm. A herd of kids surrounded her following her thrilling win against Kalieva and asked for autographs and pictures.
Kids couldn’t get enough of 16-year-old Kristina Liutova. She’ll be competing at the Memphis Classic final against Darja Vidmanova. pic.twitter.com/EMciP03RjW
— Said Bravo (@Said_Bravo1) August 1, 2026
"To see young kids be inspired by me is very special because I was also inspired by some players like Rafa Nadal. So I kind of feel them a little," Liutova said. "I'm grateful that they come to support me. It adds a little bit of energy to me."
A couple of hours later, fellow Russian-born Vidmanova dominated Renata Zarazúa 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the final.
"It was a great week. It's a big week for me," Vidmanova said. "Just to be able to compete against players in the top-100 consistently and do it in back-to-back matches. It means a lot."
Vidmanova was born in Moscow, but represents the Czech Republic internationally. She was able to make the best of her long frame (6-foot-3) and made Zarazúa look silly on some smashes and light taps.
It's something Vidmanova, 23, hopes to carry to the final against a young and upcoming star.
"She's young. Definitely a good player. It's going to be a tough match," Vidmanova said. "She's definitely motivated and ready, so we'll see."
Reach Commercial Appeal sports intern Said Bravo at said.nonoal@commercialappeal.com
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Sixteen-year-old Kristina Liutova advances to Memphis Classic final vs Darja Vidmanova
