Linda Nosková (19) ended her great campaign at this year’s Australian Open before the semi-finals. The last Czech hope in singles did not take advantage of the unique chance to play her first final at the majors, when she lost 3:6, 4:6 to qualifier Dajana Jastremská (23), who had already won eight matches at Melbourne Park and also eliminated Markéta Vondroušová. The Ukrainian will face Qinwen Zheng (21) or Anna Kalinska (25) in the semi-finals.
Nosková – Jastremská 3:6, 4:6
After a year, Linda Nosková again entered the season with an averted match point and a great result at one of the heavily occupied Australian generals. One of the most talented teenagers, she fought her way from qualification to her first final on the top circuit in Adelaide last year and finished in the top four this year in Brisbane.
While last year she arrived at the Australian Open a few hours after a difficult campaign in Adelaide, had to qualify and did not manage the opening match, this year she had enough rest before the start of the first Grand Slam of the year and several times during her debut in the main draw at Melbourne Park she improved her maximum on the big four enterprises . That was just a few days ago in the second round at last year’s French Open and US Open.
Match statistics. (@livesport)
In Melbourne Park, she confirmed that the Australian conditions suit her well. After a masterful derby with Maria Bouzková, she dealt with McCartney Kesslerová and in the third round shocked with a turn against the world number one and the biggest favorite Iza Šwiateková. Against Poland, she recorded her fourth career TOP 10 scalp, three of them on Australian soil. She entered the second week with a quick win over Elina Svitolina, who retired after three games due to a back injury.
However, she did not get past another Ukrainian representative. She entered the premiere duel with Dajana Jastremska, the 93rd player in the world, as the favorite, but this role obviously did not suit her at all in the final rounds of the Grand Slam. Against the hot qualifier, she started with a break to 2:1, but from then on, she made too many mistakes, immediately lost the lead and, after an unused break point in the seventh game, was already on the short end.
In shootouts, she couldn’t get the winning shots that normally grace her game. In the end, the native of Bystřička in Vsetín region hit only six winning shots compared to 21 unforced errors, while again she did not collect her opponent’s serve. In the second set, she did not create a single break point opportunity.
YAStremska! @D_Yastremska books her place in the #AO2024 semifinals defeating Linda Noskova 6-3 6-4.
She’s the first qualifier to reach the #AusOpen final four since 1978!
Congratulations, Dayana @wwos • @espn • @eurosport • @wowowtennis pic.twitter.com/8c8PT8xBw4
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2024
The Czech Republic could have been represented in the singles semifinals for the fourth Grand Slam in a row. Karolína Muchová fought for the title at the French Open last year, Markéta Vondroušová triumphed at Wimbledon and Muchová reached the last four at the US Open. At the Australian Open, she made it from the Czech Republic to the semifinals as the last Muchová three years ago. Jiří Lehečka and Karolína Plíšková finished in Melbourne last year before the gates of the semi-finals, and this year Nosková and Barbora Krejčíková, who did not make it to the quarter-finals even the year before.
Nosková, who worsened her quarterfinal record on the highest circuit to 4:3, can look forward to improving her previous record in the new edition of the ranking. On Monday, she will figure worst in 31st place, until now she was the highest in the world’s top 40.
“Compared to the previous days, it was very hot. The balls were flying very fast and she also played quite fast. I, on the other hand, felt that I was not 100% on the court. Maybe it was also because I did not play much last match.” Nosková said at the press conference. “So I had two days off. From the beginning, I couldn’t get mentally into the match. She, on the other hand, soon took the lead and controlled the match.” she added.
Dayana Yastremska becomes the first qualifier to reach the semifinals of the women’s singles draw at the Australian Open since 1978.
Fairytale. pic.twitter.com/cdUwVpxBkC
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 24, 2024
Jastremská returned in the summer of 2021 after a several-month doping sentence, which was canceled after her appeal. Although the former world number 21 cleared her name, she was not the same player after her return, she constantly struggled across all levels and only moved in the second half of the elite hundred ranking. At the Australian Open, however, she secured a return to the TOP 30 and is only the second qualifier to reach the semi-finals at Melbourne Park (Christine Dorey 1978).
“It’s great to make history. I wasn’t even born at the time. I’m happy and tired.” said Jastremská in an interview on the court. “I don’t even feel like I’m playing that well. I’m just trying to play as well as I can because I’m very tired. I’m trying to do my best and the rest is just a struggle.” she added.
On the way to it, she eliminated, among others, the reigning Wimbledon champion Vondroušová and the two-time champion of the opening major of the season, Viktoria Azarenkova. At the same time, she needed three sets in all three qualifying matches and registered the last winning streak in major competitions and the last quarter-final the year before in Birmingham on the highest circuit.
Kalinská – Qinwen Zheng | 09:15
Jastremská will have a playable opponent in the semifinals as well. She will continue her fairytale run against the tournament’s top 12, Qinwen Zheng, or the unseeded Anna Kalinská. The top half of the spider will offer a brand new Grand Slam finalist thanks to Nosková’s win over Šwiateková, Jastremská’s win over Azarenková or the failure of last year’s finalist Jelena Rybakinová.
The second semi-final pair was formed already on Tuesday, the defending champion Aryna Sabalenková secured a duel with the reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff after the scalp of Barbora Krejčíková.
Australian Open Women’s Singles Results
The article was originally published for Livesport News.
2024-01-24 09:17:57
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