New York., Czech tennis player Karolina Muchova eliminated Italian Jasmine Paolini, runner-up at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, in the round of 16 of the US Open on Monday.
After nine months of recovering from a wrist injury, Muchova is once again displaying her extraordinary talent at the same Grand Slam where she reached the semi-finals last year.
The Czech, currently number 52 in the WTA, gave a tennis lesson to dismiss Paolini (5th) with a resounding 6-3 and 6-3 in just 69 minutes of the first match of the day in Flushing Meadows (New York).
“I was a bit nervous at the beginning, it was a bit windy and she’s an amazing player but I’m happy it’s working out for me again here,” a smiling Muchova said.
This match was one of the most eagerly awaited of the round of 16 and attracted celebrities such as the famous Vogue editor Anna Wintour to the Louis Armstrong Stadium, the second largest in Flushing Meadows.
The battle, however, turned in Muchova’s favour much more clearly than had been predicted.
Paolini, the surprise player of the season, struggled with her serve and found no answers to the avalanche of accurate shots coming from the other side of the net.
Muchova showed no signs of the wrist problem that required surgery and postponed her season debut until June, preventing her from competing in her second consecutive Roland Garros final.
“At that moment I didn’t know what would happen. It was my worst and longest injury but I love the sport and here I am again,” said the Czech, who lost to Coco Gauff in the run-up to the final last year.
Her quarter-final opponent will come from a duel between Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia and former world number one Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark.
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– 2024-09-06 16:44:11