Unseeded Romanian Defeats No. 2 Seed Aryna Sabalenka
Sorana Cirstea has made it to the semifinals of a WTA 1000 event for the first time in 10 years after defeating No. 2 seed and reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open. This upset victory marks Cirstea’s first time at the penultimate round of a tournament of this size since finishing runner-up to Serena Williams in Toronto in 2013.
In their first career meeting, Cirstea emerged victorious by beating Sabalenka 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals.
Cirstea stated her happiness with the result in the post-match interview saying, “I think I’m a bit speechless. I came out knowing that it’s going to be a really tough match. Aryna hits so hard, so I knew I had to hold my ground, and I’m very, very happy with my performance today. I’m not defined by numbers. I’m just trying to keep my head down and work hard.”
Match Analysis: Cirstea Matches Sabalenka’s Power Game
Cirstea matched Sabalenka’s power game throughout the match by hitting seven aces and two double faults to Sabalenka’s six double faults. Three of these double faults came at the worst possible time for Sabalenka: on break point. Cirstea also hit 16 winners to a tidy nine unforced errors while Sabalenka had 21 in each category.
Next Up for Cirstea
Cirstea will face the winner of the evening quarterfinal between two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, the No. 15 seed, and unseeded Ekaterina Alexandrova for a spot in the final.
Credit: https://www.wtatennis.com/news/3124520/cirstea-upsets-sabalenka-reaches-first-wta-1000-semifinal-in-a-decade
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