Karolina Muchova admitted to being nervous at the start of her fourth-round match at the U.S. Open on Monday. As it turned out, her worries were unfounded.
Finally fully recovered from wrist surgery, the Czech player beat fifth seed Jasmine Paolini 6-3, 6-3 in just over an hour to reach the quarterfinals.
It was an upset, as Paolini had reached the finals at both Wimbledon and the French Open, but it was an upset on paper, not in reality.
Muchova reached the semifinals here last year and the French Open final and reached a career-high ranking of eighth.
But wrist surgery sidelined him for 10 months and he admitted in an on-court television interview that it was the “worst and most serious injury” of his career so far.
Muchova finally returned at Eastbourne in June, but the U.S. Open was just her sixth tournament. The 52nd-ranked player did not drop a set in Flushing.
Her serve-and-volley game was strong on Monday, as she won 11 of 14 net points and 60 of 79 points so far in the tournament.
“I'm very happy, I'm really happy,” Muchova said. “I was nervous today and I felt like my shots were receding in the first game, so I was a little surprised because that doesn't happen very often.”
“But it's an important game for me. I knew it was an important game. I just wanted to play well. So maybe that's why I have all those feelings. But [the] After the match, I was very happy to have advanced to the quarterfinals.”
Muchova, who hit 17 winners, will reach her second consecutive U.S. Open semifinal against Beatrice Haddad Maia, against whom she has a perfect 3-0 record.
“I played Bea last year, I think, maybe in Cincinnati. It was a very tough three sets. She's a big fighter, she's left-handed,” Muchova said.
Brazil's 22nd seed Haddad Maia beat former world number one Caroline Wozniacki 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
“It's definitely going to be a tough fight. It was a great game from both of us last time we played. … I'm very happy to have the opportunity to play against a big player on a big stage, that's our goal,” Maia said of Muchova, breaking down in tears as the crowd chanted “Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole, Bea, Bea!”
“I tried to hold back my emotions until the end of the game, but now I can't. It's very special for me.”
A year ago, she had never made it past the second round of a major tournament. Now, Haddad Maia will be fighting for a place in the semifinals after defeating a former Australian Open champion.
“Obviously as an athlete, it's disappointing to lose a match like that and not advance. I thought it was a tough match. I didn't get off to the best start. It was hard to find my rhythm, being a lefty,” Wozniacki said. “I went in trying to win the match, wanting to win, believing I could win.”
In the fourth round, No. 25 Jack Draper of Great Britain defeated Tomas Maczak of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-1, 6-2.
