Barbora Strycova yesterday erupted at the umpire after a contentious line call in her women’s doubles semi-final, but the Czech and Taiwanese partner Hsieh Su-wei had the last laugh in an often heated match as they booked a spot in tomorrow’s final at the Australian Open.
However, there will be no Taiwanese showdown at Melbourne Park after the Chan sisters were ousted in the second semi-final at Margaret Court Arena.
Strycova berated chair umpire John Bloom in the first set of the top seeds’ semi-final against fellow Czechs Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova after he allowed the fourth seeds to challenge a line call, despite two more shots being played in the rally.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Strycova called for the tournament referee, yelling: “You know I am right,” but the benefit went with her opponents after Hawk-Eye showed that Strycova’s shot had gone long.
However, fueled by a sense of injustice Hsieh and Strycova then went on to complete a 6-2, 6-3 victory in a semi-final that featured several more heated moments between the Czech players — moments that Hsieh looked to stay out of.
“I tried not to get into the Czech fight,” Hsieh said after the match.
“At the end a little bit it was a catfight,” Strycova said. “This is how it is sometimes.”
“I’m very happy that we are through to the final,” she added. “It means so much to me, and especially to do it with a partner like Su-wei by my side makes it extra special that we are in another Grand Slam final.”
The reigning Wimbledon champions saved both break points they faced and converted four of 10, winning 81 percent of points on their first serve and hitting 14 winners to set up a final against second seeds Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic, who defeated Taiwanese seventh seeds Chan Hao-ching and Latisha Chan 7-5, 6-2 in the second semi-final.
The Hungarian-French duo did not concede a single break point and won 94 percent of points on their first serve to complete the comprehensive victory in 1 hour, 25 minutes.
WOMEN’S SINGLES
Simona Halep is back in the Australian Open semi-finals and Garbine Muguruza has made it for the first time.
The pair of two-time major winners are to play for a spot in the final of the season-opening major after world No. 4 Halep and unseeded Muguruza won their quarter-finals in straight sets yesterday.
Both have won Wimbledon, claimed the French Open and been ranked world No. 1. Now, they are bidding for their first Grand Slam title on a hard court.
“Any Grand Slam, it’s a priority. I will not just choose one,” Halep said. “But, of course, it’s going to be great if I will be able to win one on hard court.”
Halep has been close before, losing the final in three sets at Melbourne Park to Caroline Wozniacki in 2018.
The 28-year-old Romanian said that the tough loss was the main push for her breakthrough win that year at Roland Garros, where she beat Muguruza in the semi-finals.
Halep needed only 53 minutes to beat first-time major quarter-finalist Kontaveit 6-1, 6-1.
“Perfection doesn’t exist, but I’m very happy with the way I played. I felt great on court. I was moving great. I felt the ball, like, really, really good,” she said. “It was a great match.”
Muguruza took a little more than 1 hour, 30 minutes to eliminate world No. 30 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5, 6-3, with both players struggling with their serves in the sun from one end.
Five of the eight service breaks were in the first set, which lasted 56 minutes.
The win earned Muruguza a spot in the semi-finals at Melbourne Park for the first time and her first at any Grand Slam tournament since the French Open in 2018.
There are three major winners in the last four, with reigning French Open champion Ashleigh Barty playing world No. 14 Sofia Kenin in today’s other women’s semi-final. The top-ranked Barty is trying to end a drought for Australians at home: The last woman to win the singles championship was Chris O’Neil in 1978.
Halep spent her off-season away from home for the first time so that she could fully focus on the season and her quest for a third major title.
“No days off,” Halep said.
Kontaveit held the opening game at love. From then on, it was all one way as Halep went on a relentless 11-game roll.
Halep worked for every point and only faced one break point, fending it off with a commanding forehand winner.
In the second set, Halep won the longest rally of the match — a 25-shot exchange — and then followed it up immediately with an ace on the way to a 5-0 lead.
Seeded fourth, Halep has advanced to the last four without dropping a set and said that she feels like she is playing her best tennis.
“I feel strong on my legs. I’ve been focused, every point,” she said. “This year I’ve started very well. I’m feeling much stronger than before.”
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