WHAT HAPPENED: It took Maria Sakkari 20 main draw appearances at the Grand Slams to reach her first major singles semifinal, a feat she accomplished this June at Roland Garros. On Wednesday night in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Sakkari reached her secondーand first at the US Openーwith a brilliant serving performance to take down No. 4 seed Karolina Pliskova, 6-4, 6-4.
It was a serving performance for the ages from Sakkari, who became the first Greek player to ever reach a US Open semifinal with her victory. The Athens native needed just a single break of serve in each set to make the match feel like a one-sided triumph.
It was a serving performance for the ages from Sakkari, who needed just a single break of serve in each set to make the match feel like a one-sided triumph.
Pliskova, the 2016 US Open runner-up, didn’t know it at the time, but the opening set was over for all intents and purposes when Sakkari secured a break in the third game to take a 2-1 lead. The Greek, in the midst of one of the finest serving performances of her career, produced four consecutive love holds to close out the set in 35 eye-popping minutes.
After the match, Sakkari was told by ESPN’s Pam Shriver on court that she won 22 consecutive points on serve during a torrid stretch of six games early in the match.
“I’m impressed,” Sakkari said. “I trusted my serve, but now I’m going to trust it even more.”
Pliskova, the WTA’s resident ace queen, rode her serve into the quarterfinals in New York, producing a 24-ace performance in the second-round to defeat Amanda Anisimova, and a 20-ace performance in the third round to stop Ajla Tomljanovic, but the 29-year-old Czech was forced to witness a role reversal on Wednesday night.
It was Sakkari, time and time again, who dictated with the serve. The No. 17 seed was ruthless and efficient, hitting her spots and moving inside the court to knock off short balls as Pliskova’s returns landed short.
“I’m speechless,” Sakkari told the crowd. “I don’t know what to say.”
Pliskova saved two break points in the first game of the second set, which bought her some time, but Sakkari and her supreme serving never relented. Several minutes later the Greek converted her second break point of the seventh game to secure the critical break for 4-3.
Two games later Sakkari didn’t blink in her first chance to serve out the victory.
She wrapped up her victory in one hour and 22 minutes, and didn’t face a single break point in the contest.
Sakkari finished with 23 winners against 12 unforced errors, while Pliskova hit 14 winners against 23 unforced errors.
In her post-match press conference, Sakkari expressed confidence in her form. She talks like a player who believes her time to shine has finally arrived.
“I think I'm at the best age of my career,” she said. “I'm more mature than before. As I said many times, I think every single player has a different timing of breaking through. Now it's probably my time at the age of 26. I came in late to the tour. I was not a good junior. I was not a star when I was 18 or 19 years old. I had to work and sacrifice a lot from my life. But it's now paying off and I'm very happy that at the age of 26 I can actually achieve these results.”
WHAT IT MEANS: The 26-year-old Greek moves into her second career Grand Slam semifinal, where she will face 18-year-old British qualifier Emma Raducanu. It’s a great opportunity for both players, as there is not a single player left in the women’s singles draw who has ever played a Grand Slam singles final.
“I think, first of all, it’s great for our sport,” Sakkari said of the fact that two teenagers (Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez) have reached the US Open women’s singles semifinals in the same year for the first time since 2009. “Two young girlsーnot two, we have Coco [Gauff], we have many young girls playing right now. Emma, she’s having a great run, and Leylah as well, but I trust myself, I trust my game, and I believe a lot in myself.”
“I feel like my tennis is better now than it was at the French,” she said. “I'm more prepared. I'm ready. But as I mentioned earlier, we all have equal chances of making the finals... It doesn't matter that she's lower ranked. She's a great player. I'm just going to go for it and enjoy because the atmosphere today was insane.”
MATCH POINT: Sakkari reeled off 22 consecutive points on serve, from 0-1, 0-30 in the opening set to 0-1, 30-0 in the second set, an incredible span that touched six different games. Sakkari won 24 of 26 first serve points and dropped a total of eight points on serve.
