Katerina Siniakova upset 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the second round of the Emilia Romagna Open.
Siniakova claimed the sixth top 10 win of her career with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 victory over top seed Serena Williams in 1 hour and 37 minutes.
Siniakova fended off a set point serving at 4-5 down with a forehand winner in the first set. The Czech player won 16 of the last 18 points to take the second set 6-2 moving into her second quarter final this year.
Both players saved a break point in their opening service games. They went on serve with no break opportunities until Williams earned a set point in the ninth game. Siniakova saved them before earning the first break of the match at 5-5. Williams broke straight back in the 12th game, as Siniakova was attempting to serve out the set.
Siniakova won the tie-break 7-4 after a couple of mini-breaks from Williams. Siniakova earned the first mini-break to take a 3-1 lead. Williams pulled back on serve to 3-3. Siniakova earned her second mini-break on the eighth game to claim the tie-break.
Williams earned an early break in the first game of the second set, but Siniakova broke straight back to draw level to 1-1. Siniakova won 15 consecutive points including two breaks in the sixth and eighth games to win the second set 6-2.
“Not every day is really amazing. If you go to play against a player like this, you really have nothing to lose, so I came up and wanted to enjoy it. In the beginning I was so nervous, but when it was 1-1 everything just came down and I was just really enjoying it. I was feeling so free and so free that it just really went my way”, said Siniakova.
Petra Martic beat Varvara Gracheva 6-4 6-2 after 1 hour and 21 minutes. The Croatian player reached her first WTA 1000 semifinal in Rome last week under the guidance of her new coach Francesca Schiavone.
US tennger Coco Gauff battled past Kaia Kanepi 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (9-7). Gauff came back from 3-5 down in the first set and fended off a set point in the tie-break. Kanepi came back from 1-5 down in the second set by winning five consecutive games. Gauff saved two more set points in the second set tie-break before sealing the win on her first match point. Sloane Stephens came back from one set down to beat Daria Kasatkina 1-6 6-4 7-5 in 2 hours and 5 minutes. Kasatkina broke twice in the fourth and sixth games to win the first set 6-1. The second set was marked by nine break in ten games, as Stephens held the only serve in the seventh game to win the second set 6-4. Kasatkina got an early break in the first game of the third set to take a 2-0 lead. Stephens broke back in the fourth game at deuce to draw level to 2-2. Boh players traded breaks in the next four games en route to 4-4. Kasatkina fended off three match points in the 12th game, but Stephens converted her fourth chance to win the third set 7-5.
