Tennis-Swiatek's Stuttgart hat-trick bid ended by Rybakina, Kostyuk into final

Tennis - WTA 500 - Stuttgart Tennis Grand Prix - Tennis Club Weissenhof, Stuttgart, Germany - April 20, 2024 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina shakes hands with Poland's Iga Swiatek after winning her semi final match REUTERS/Angelika Warmuth

(Reuters) -World number one Iga Swiatek's bid to win a third successive Stuttgart Open title came to an end in an enthralling 6-3 4-6 6-3 semi-final loss to Elena Rybakina on Saturday.

Rybakina ended Swiatek's perfect record in Stuttgart by handing the Pole her first defeat in 11 matches at the tournament and the Kazakhstani fourth seed will meet Marta Kostyuk in the final.