Australian Open: Cornet survives Halep and warmth to succeed in maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal

Alize Cornet has lastly reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam event at her 63rd try.
The 32-year-old Cornet survived a second-set meltdown to advance to the final eight on the Australian Open with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win over two-time main winner Simona Halep.

“I admire this player so much.”
The stage of admiration for @Simona_Halep from @alizecornet is a vibe 🙌#AusOpen • #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/DtSKJnvth2
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022
“It’s never too late to try again!” Cornet mentioned in her on-court TV interview. “To be in my first quarterfinal. It’s a dream come true.
“The journey goes on. I nonetheless can’t imagine it.
Cornet led by a set and 3-1 earlier than dropping 5 consecutive video games and 16 straight factors to ship the match to a decider.

Always a fighter 💪@Simona_Halep rattles off 5 straight video games to power the decider with Cornet, claiming the second set 6-3. #AusOpen · #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/O5p8vVVWj4
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022

Saving match level like an absolute Grand Slam champ 😯@Simona_Halep · #AusOpen · #AO2022🎥: @wwos · @espn · @Eurosport · @wowowtennis pic.twitter.com/wWw4bdDOpI
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022
Halep saved two match factors on her serve within the ninth sport earlier than Cornet clinched the match within the tenth. She dropped to her knees on the court docket and clasped her palms collectively, placing them over her face earlier than wanting into the stadium at her help group.
“It feels amazing,” Cornet mentioned. “The battle we had with Simone, with this heat. After 30 minutes, we were dying.”

No dry eyes in the home 😭😭😭
This on-court interview between @alizecornet and Jelena Dokic is every little thing. #AusOpen · #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/F3nN0XSHNX
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022
Cornet will subsequent play Danielle Collins, who beat Nineteenth-seeded Elise Mertens 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.in an virtually three-hour match to open play on Rod Laver Arena. Collins was a semifinalist in Australia in 2019.
Cornet has by no means made it previous the fourth spherical since making her Grand Slam singles debut as a wild-card entry on the 2005 French Open. This is her seventeenth marketing campaign on the Australian Open.
Both ladies’s matches on Day 8 have been performed in temperatures as much as 34 Celsius (93 F). Cornet used baggage of ice to chill down her head throughout changeovers, and draped chilly towels over her neck.
“I just stopped thinking after . . . 30 minutes of playing. My brain was already like, overloaded,” Cornet mentioned. “My vision was not clear anymore. My hands were shaking.”
But, she added, “I thought, on the other side of the court, she was not feeling much better than me.”

Responsive 💪@alizecornet · #AusOpen · #AO2022🎥: @wwos · @espn · @Eurosport · @wowowtennis pic.twitter.com/YZ8o28ID95
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022
Cornet, taking part in in her sixtieth Grand Slam event in a row, was 0-5 in fourth-round matches on the majors earlier than Monday.
Her victory over Halep, a former Wimbledon and French Open champion and runner-up in Australia, gave her a file for many appearances at a significant earlier than reaching the final eight. Tamarine Tanasugarn beforehand held the mark at 45, set at Wimbledon in 2008.
Cornet needed to do the laborious means, too. Cornet beat third-seeded Garbine Muguruza in straight units within the second spherical however needed to rally from 6-4, 4-1 all the way down to beat 2021 French Open semifinalist Tamara Zidansek in a 2-hour, 43-minute third-round win.

Welcome again to the final eight 👋
🇺🇸 Danielle Collins returns to the #AusOpen quarterfinals with a 4-6 6-4 6-4 comeback over Elise Mertens.#AusOpen · #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/bWOk7ooXmM
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2022
Collins hasn’t had a straight-forward path, both, having to rally from a set all the way down to win back-to-back matches at a Grand Slam event for the primary time.
The 28-year-old American additionally dropped the primary set in her third-round win over Clara Tauson.
“Today it was really physically tough for me,” Collins mentioned. “I performed an extended match the opposite day _ 2 1/2 hours _ after which I performed doubles, so I spent about 5 hours on court docket.
“I had to make a lot of technical adjustments to make myself comfortable moving around, especially serving.”

Collins was aggressive along with her floor strokes, hitting 45 winners and and making 41 errors in opposition to Mertens. She transformed 5 of her 18 break-point probabilities and clinched the victory when Mertens, a semifinalist in Australia in 2018, served a double-fault.