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MELBOURNE – World number one Ash Barty’s dream of becoming the first Australian Open local champion since 1978 ended in an extraordinary quarter-final loss (1-6, 6-3, 6-2) to Karolína Muchová el Wednesday.
The Czech was a transformed player after a medical timeout in the second set and recovered to secure a place in her first Grand Slam semifinal, where she will meet the winner of the clash between the Americans Jennifer Brady and Jessica Pegula.
Ms. Barty wasted no time stamping her authority on the contest and appeared to be losing ground as she conceded just six points in the race to a 5-0 lead in just over a quarter of an hour, ending the first set soon after. .
Ms. Muchová received a treatment in her chair at the beginning of the second set and then took a long time off medical, returning to the court revitalized and ready to bring the match to the former French Open champion.
“I started to feel a bit lost and at the end of the first set, Ash was playing very well, he made almost no mistakes,” said Ms Muchová.
“My head was spinning so I took a break… It was more, they just controlled my pressure. Like I said, I was a little lost, I was spinning. They chilled me a bit and helped me … “
Although not as dominant as the Australian had been in the opening set, the Czech tied the match at 1-1 to become the first player to take a top seed in this tournament.
Ms. Barty continued to create opportunities with Ms. Muchová’s service but was unable to convert them and her error count skyrocketed as she tried to finish points too early to regain momentum.
Millisecond. Muchto, the 25th Seeded, he hit 17 winners in the match and challenged his nerves for the win on the first try, sealing his spot in the last four with an ace.
“I just tried to put a ball in and go for it, play a little faster, go to the net,” added Ms. Muchová to explain her transformation. “I am happy I handled it well.”
The canned applause that came to the arena in the absence of fans seemed to mock Ms Barty, who would have been guaranteed passionate support for her semi-final, had she survived after the coronavirus lockdown was lifted in Melbourne. – Reuters
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