Stefanos Tsitsipas advances to final 4 of the Australian Open

Stefanos Tsitsipas maintained his good file in Grand Slam quarterfinals, beating No. 11-seeded Jannick Sinner 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 Wednesday to succeed in the final 4 of the Australian Open.
The 23-year-old, No. 4-ranked Tsitsipas improved to 5-0 at this stage of a significant. It’s the semifinals he’s but to grasp, profitable only one — at Roland Garros final yr — from 4 to date.
He’ll subsequent participant both Daniil Medvedev, who made his Grand Slam breakthrough when he received final yr’s U.S. Open title, or No. 9 Felix Auger-Aliassime. No. 2 Medvedev and Auger-Aliassime had been assembly later Wednesday in an evening match.
Tsitsipas didn’t face a break level and transformed all 4 he bought on Sinner’s serve within the match that lasted simply over two hours, significantly lower than his five-set fourth-round win over Taylor Fritz.
The solely actual delay got here from a climate disruption, when a late afternoon storm meant the roof over Rod Laver Arena needed to be closed when the Greek star was already up a set and a break.
“I knew I was heading toward the right direction,” Tsitsipas mentioned. “The conditions might have changed a little bit after the roof was closed — slightly faster, not as bouncy as before. I tried to adapt to the new conditions, and it just worked.”
Dozens of ball youngsters and employees used towels to absorb water on the court docket within the 15-minute break.
The temperature dropped from the highs of the afternoon, when Iga Swiatek took three hours within the afternoon warmth to beat 36-year-old Kaia Kanepi 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-3, with the payoff being a spot within the semifinals towards Danielle Collins.
“This match was crazy,” the 20-year-old, 2020 French Open winner mentioned. “First set I think my mistake was I had so many break points, I felt like I missed my chances. In the second set … I felt like she’s playing so fast that I can’t be tight. I had to finish my forehands.”
The temperature reached 36 levels Celsius (97 levels Fahrenheit) on Day 10, persevering with every week of sizzling climate.
Collins received the opening match earlier than the warmth peaked, swinging it in her favor with a key service break within the closing recreation of the opening set on her method to a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Alize Cornet.
No. 115-ranked Kanepi was coming off an upset, three-set win over No. 2-ranked Aryna Sabalenka and took the match to Swiatek, who saved 9 set factors earlier than dropping the primary set.
Swiatek rallied within the second, exchanging service breaks twice earlier than profitable it in a tiebreaker.
After getting on prime within the the third, Swiatek was damaged within the eighth recreation when she was serving for the match. She ultimately clinched on Kanepi’s serve, scrambling to remain within the final level till the Estonian participant despatched a forehand extensive.
After the primary three quarterfinals had been determined in straight units — Ash Barty beat Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys beat Barbora Krejcikova on Tuesday — the final one went all the best way.
As she left the court docket, Swiatek wrote on the TV digicam lens: “Thank you for the support. # Tired.”
Collins’ win means there are two Americans within the final 4. Keys, the 2017 U.S. Open runner-up, will play reigning Wimbledon and 2019 French Open winner Barty.
Swiatek is the one one of many 4 gamers within the Australian Open semis for the primary time. Collins misplaced to Petra Kvitova within the semifinals right here in 2019, which stays her finest run thus far. Keys misplaced to Serena Williams in 2015 and Barty misplaced a semifinal closing in 2020 to eventual champion Sofia Kenin.
Collins underwent surgical procedure final yr to deal with endometriosis, a situation which had triggered her extreme ache throughout tournaments in 2021.
“It feels incredible, especially after some of the health challenges I’ve had,” Collins mentioned. “To be capable of get again to this degree and be capable of compete like the best way I’ve been … is so rewarding.
“I’ve had some great matches along the way at this tournament … really happy about how I’m feeling physically and mentally.”
For Cornet, the loss ended a career-best run. The quarterfinal was her first in 63 Grand Slam main-draw appearances. The WTA predicts that the 32-year-old Cornet ought to return to the highest 50.
Cornet had anticipated an aggressive recreation technique from Collins, however the energy within the floor strokes was “even more than what I expected.”
“I felt out of breath all the time. I couldn’t, like, play my game,” Cornet mentioned. “She just never let me do it, never gave me the time.”