Barty gets her revenge on Kvitova
MELBOURNE: Ash Barty stormed into her maiden Australian Open semi-final with an emphatic 7-6(6), 6-2 win over Petra Kvitova that avenged her defeat to the hard-hitting Czech in last year’s quarter-final at Melbourne Park.
Thrashed 6-1, 6-4 by eventual finalist Kvitova 12 months ago, top seed Barty rode a wave of crowd support as she defused the twice Wimbledon champion’s power game before running away with the contest on a glorious afternoon at Rod Laver Arena.
“It’s been absolutely incredible, I knew I had to bring my absolute best against Petra,” Barty said on court.
“I think Petra, in my eyes, is the perfect competitor.
“Regardless of whether she wins or loses she’s always got a big grin on her face.
“I absolutely love testing myself against her.”
French Open champion Barty saved two break points serving for the match, then thumped down four first serves in succession, sealing the win in style with an ace. The 23-year-old became the first Australian woman to reach the semi-finals at Melbourne Park since Wendy Turnbull in 1984.
She will play 14th seeded American Sofia Kenin, who earlier ended Tunisian Ons Jabeur’s fairytale run, for a place in the final.
“Obviously she’s having an incredible run, she’s really developed her game over the last 12-18 months,” Barty said of the Moscow-born Kenin.
“It’s about me trying to get my running shoes on again.
“I’m going to have nothing but a massive smile on my face when I walk out here on this beautiful court.”
Australia have not had a home winner at Melbourne Park since Chris O’Neil’s triumph in the women’s tournament in 1978 but the sports-mad nation may feel Barty is poised to break the drought.
KENIN BEATS JABEUR
Kenin said she was living the “American Dream” on Tuesday after the 14th seed reached her first Grand Slam semi-final at the Australian Open.
The 21-year-old, who beat fellow American Coco Gauff in the previous round, faces top seed Barty in the last four after defeating the unseeded Jabeur 6-4, 6-4.
Kenin, who lives in Florida, moved with her family to the United States from Russia when she was very young, reportedly with just a few hundred dollars to their name.
“My parents moved to America so I could have the American dream,” said Kenin.
“They gave me an American dream. I’m proud of it and thankful for them,” added the world number 15, who will now rise to at least 12—matching her career high, and becoming the secondranked American behind Serena Williams.
Kenin, a fiercely proud American with an aggressive playing style, said holding serve at 2-3 in the second set, a game that stretched to 10 minutes, was a turning point against Tunisia’s Jabeur.
“It was a tough moment, she was playing well. I didn’t know it was 10 minutes but it felt pretty long,” she said.
“But after that I got my momentum and started playing better.”
The 78th-ranked Jabeur, the first Arab woman to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final, was always on the back foot.
The 25-year-old hit 18 unforced errors in the first set to Kenin’s six. Jabeur grazed her shin with her racquet in the second set and Kenin sealed her spot in the semifinals at the first match point when Jabeur’s return flopped into the net.
Kenin, who turned professional in 2013, won her first three WTA titles last year as her career started to take off.
She paid tribute to her family, especially her father Alexander, who is also her coach, for supporting her when others did not.
“I really had to establish myself to show everyone who I am,” said Kenin, who came into Melbourne with little fanfare.