Emma Raducanu 'has the game' says Iga Swiatek after ending her run in Stuttgart, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff stunned
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Updated 19/04/2024 at 21:56 GMT
Iga Swiatek will face Elena Rybakina for a place in the Stuttgart Open final after overcoming a spirited Emma Raducanu in the quarter-finals. The 21-year-old Brit lost in straight sets but provided stiff competition for the two-time defending champion. Second seed Aryna Sabalenka was stunned by Marketa Vondrousova, who will Marta Kostyuk after her big win over Coco Gauff.
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Emma Raducanu’s run at the Stuttgart Open came to an end against Iga Swiatek as the world No. 1 earned an "intense" straight-sets quarter-final victory on Friday.
The Brit fell to a 7-6(2) 6-3 defeat in just over two hours as Swiatek set up a semi-final date with Elena Rybakina to continue her bid for a third consecutive title in Germany.
"It was a pretty intense match," Swiatek said. "I was happy that I was able to keep the intensity even though we played some tough games for like two hours.
"It wasn't easy. I had a lot of break points which I didn't convert so still I'm happy that I could finish it with a better score in the second set than in the first."
Swiatek is yet to lose at the event, winning all 10 of her matches so far, but was pushed hard by Raducanu in the opening set.
The former US Open champion went toe-to-toe with Swiatek as the players earned one break each before the Pole took control in a tie-break.
The second set was more decisive from Swiatek, who did not face a single break point and took two of the seven she earned to march into the last four.
Swiatek’s head-to-head record against Raducanu now stands at a perfect 3-0, the four-time major champion winning every set in those matches, but she believes the young Brit can climb the rankings once more.
"There are a lot of factors coming in if you want to stay consistently at the top but I hope [Raducanu] will be able to do it," Swiatek said.
"For sure she has the game but it's not easy."
Raducanu bowed out with her head held high as her comeback from an injury-hit 2023 continues.
Her wins over Angelique Kerber and Linda Noskova in Stuttgart followed up two victories at the Billie Jean King Cup to mark the first time the Brit has won four matches in a row since her stunning triumph at Flushing Meadows in 2021.
Swiatek is gearing up for a tilt at a fourth Roland-Garros title in five years and will go to Paris as the two-time defending champion when the second Grand Slam of the year kicks off on May 20, live on Eurosport and discovery+.
Rybakina digs in for win
Rybakina was first to book her spot in the final four, reaching the semi-finals in Stuttgart for the first time by beating Jasmine Paolini in three sets.
The fourth seed triumphed 6-3 5-7 6-3 as she bids for a third title of the season in her first tournament appearance since losing the Miami Open final to Danielle Collins.
Rybakina and Swiatek’s meeting will be a repeat of the Qatar Open final, where the world No. 1 triumphed in straight sets in February.
Sabalenka stunned by Vondrousova
Second seed Aryna Sabalenka crashed out to Marketa Vondrousova in an eventful two-hour quarter-final clash.
The Wimbledon champion, seeded sixth in Stuttgart, had not beaten her Belarusian counterpart for six years, but came from behind to win 3-6 6-3 7-5.
Victory meant Vondrousova has reached a semi-final for the first time since her shock win at SW19 last year, and she will face Marta Kostyuk for a place in the final.
An unpredictable match featured 13 breaks of serve and saw Sabalenka hit 35 winners to her Czech opponent’s 17, but rack up 48 unforced errors to 19.
Kostyuk takes down Gauff
World No. 3 Coco Gauff was the final big name to fall on Friday as she lost 3-6 6-4 7-6(6) to Marta Kostyuk.
The Ukrainian is enjoying a memorable week in Germany and made it back-to-back wins against top-10 players after taking out Zheng Qinwen in the previous round.
Kostyuk has been in fine form of late and her run to the last four is her third semi-final appearance in a row.
She claimed revenge for an Australian Open quarter-final defeat to the American with an impressive comeback from a set and a break down.
After dropping the opening set in 36 minutes, Kostyuk steadied her serve but found herself trailing 4-2 in the second before charging back with a run of four straight games to earn a decider.
Gauff led 3-1 in the third set, but again let her advantage slip as the world No. 27 found winner after winner to fight back once more.
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