Western e Southern Open: Maria Sakkari shunts out Serena Williams

On the last match of Tuesday at the Western & Southern Open, 13th seed Maria Sakkari downed 23-time Slam champion Serena Williams in their pre-quarter-final match.

In what was a valiant showing, the Greek rallied from losing the opening set to clinching the match 6-1 in the third (with the final score reading 5-7, 7-6(5), 6-1) after two hours and 17 minutes. While Williams dominated the start of the match, Sakkari bided her time to push her higher-ranked opponent on the backfoot without losing sight of her tactics. In the second set, it was Sakkari who gained the lead with an early break of serve but Williams pulled her back – reminiscent of her opponent doing the same to her in the first set – and even served for the match.

However, while the 38-year-old American was unable to serve her way out, the moment also turned out to be the pivot that changed the direction of the match entirely in her younger rival. The third set was completely one-sided as Williams looked out-of-sorts all of a sudden.

After the match, a rueful Williams admitted, “It was tough. I literally should have won that match. There was no excuse. It was hard, but I had so many opportunities to win, and I have to figure that one out, like how to start winning those matches again. There is really no excuses, to be honest… I literally put myself in this situation. You know, it's like dating a guy that you know sucks. That's literally what I keep doing out here. It's like I have got to get rid of this guy. It just makes no sense. It's frustrating.”

Western & Southern Open: Ons Jabeur and Victoria Azarenka to vie for SF spot

During her conversation with the media, a visibly-elated Sakkari shared, “I'm kind of proud of myself that I came through that match just because of my mentality and my fighting spirit.”

In the bottom half of the draw, Sakkari will take on eighth seed Johanna Konta in the quarter-finals. Konta won her pre-quarters 6-4, 6-2 against former world no. 2 Vera Zvonareva.

The last women’s singles quarter-final at the Western & Southern Open will be played between Ons Jabeur and Victoria Azarenka. Jabeur got past Christina McHale 6-3, 6-0 while Azarenka took a 6-4, 7-5 win over Alize Cornet.

Photo Credit: Western & Southern Open Website

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