Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur on Tuesday became the first African woman to reach the semi-finals of the US Open, as France’s Caroline Garcia ended the hopes of American teenager Coco Gauff to advance to the last four and Karen Khachanov set up a semi-final duel with Casper Ruud after battling past a “devastated” Nick Kyrgios.
Jabeur, who also claimed a notable first in July as the first woman from Africa to reach the final at Wimbledon, scored a 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) win over Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic.
The 28-year-old next faces Garcia in the semi-finals after the in-form 17th seed dispatched the 18-year-old Gauff 6-3, 6-4 in Tuesday’s other quarter-final.
Photo:AFP
Tomljanovic had landed in the quarter-finals after a run which included a third-round victory over Serena Williams, in what was most likely the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s final singles match before retirement.
The Croatia-born Aussie’s battling campaign came to a grinding halt against the dynamic fifth-seeded Jabeur, the Tunisian attacking from the outset and never letting up.
Jabeur said she had been infused with belief since reaching the Wimbledon final, where she was beaten in three sets by Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina.
Photo: Reuters
“I believe more in myself,” Jabeur said. “After Wimbledon it was very positive. Even though I lost the final, I knew I had it in me to win a Grand Slam. And here I am in the semi-finals of the US Open.”
Jabeur is known affectionately as the “Minister of Happiness” by fans in Tunisia for the joy that her progress on court has brought to her homeland.
However, she admitted she had let her frustration get the better of her on Tuesday, when she banged her racket in frustration several times after coughing up multiple service breaks in the second set.
“I think I’m gonna be fired from my job as Minister of Happiness,” she joked. “It is tough to manage my frustration. I apologize for my behavior. I really wanted to keep calm, but the racket kept slipping away from my hand.”
Garcia reached the first Grand Slam semi-final of her career after an ultimately emphatic win over Gauff.
“My head is buzzing, I can’t describe how I feel,” Garcia said after a quarter-final she dominated almost from start to finish.
Garcia arrived in New York fresh from winning the Western & Southern Open, and Tuesday’s win was her 13th straight singles victory.
Gauff took satisfaction from her first US Open quarter-final appearance, but said her campaign was tinged by disappointment.
“First quarter-final at the US Open, so there’s a lot to be proud of, but definitely disappointed,” she said. “I think it makes me want to work even harder. I feel like I know what I have to do.”
In the men’s singles, Khachanov defeated Kyrgios in a big-hitting five-setter, shattering the Australian crowd-pleaser’s dreams of a maiden Grand Slam title.
Russian 27th seed Khachanov triumphed 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 6-7 (3/7), 6-4 over the Wimbledon runner-up to make the last four at a major for the first time.
Earlier, Norwegian fifth seed Ruud defeated Italy’s Matteo Berrettini 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) to make his second Slam semi-final of the year, having finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the French Open.
Khachanov fired 30 aces and a total of 63 winners past Kyrgios.
“I did it, guys. Finally, you are showing me some love,” Khachanov told the mostly pro-Kyrgios crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It was a crazy match I was expecting it would be like this. I’m ready to run, to fight to play five sets. We played almost four hours and that’s the only way to beat Nick,” he said.
Kyrgios, who had knocked out defending champion Daniil Medvedev in the round-of-16, hit 31 aces in his 75 winners.
However, his unforced error count of 58 was almost double the 31 of Khachanov.
“I’m devastated. It’s heartbreaking for me and everyone,” Kyrgios said. “I feel like I have let so many people down.”
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