The British Raducanu player was impressive when he was led 2-5 in the second set to beat Maria Sakkari in two sets at the Washington Open, thereby gaining the first semi-finals in the 2025 season.
The 22-year-old player, who was shocked when the No. 7 seed Marta Kostyuk in the first round and then overcame the former Grand Slam champion of Naomi Osaka in the second round, continued impressive performance when defeating the Greek opponent with a score of 6-4, 7-5.
In the semi -finals, Raducanu will face Anna Kalinskaya or No. 4 Clara Taison in an attempt to win the first WTA final since the US Open championship in 2021.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Raducanu said: “I have worked very hard in the past time. When you get a positive result, you gradually build confidence. But more importantly, you know that you have prepared behind the scenes. That helps me reduce pressure when entering each game.”
Raducanu is also hoping to win the title of a couple when she and her partner Elena Rybanika reached the semi -finals. They will confront the No. 2 seeds Taylor Townsend and Zhang Shuai at the end of Friday.
In hot weather in Washington DC, both Raducanu and Sakkari have difficulty keeping the serve in the first set. Raducanu took advantage of 3/6 chances of serve, while Sakkari only succeeded in 2/4.
At the time of 4-4, Raducanu launched a decisive blow when breaking the serve for the third time and then successfully took advantage of the second set point to win the 6-4 victory. Sakkari, the runner-up of the tournament in 2023, had the opportunity to pull the match to set Ba when breaking the serve in the sixth game and successfully saved two breaks to take the 5-2 lead in Set Hai.
However, Raducanu has gained a strong area, won five consecutive games and took advantage of 2/5 of the break opportunity to close the set with a score of 7-5, thereby winning the final.
In the second set, Raducanu had to rely on medical care from physiotherapy staff and later admitted that she felt “a little stunned” because of the heat. “Today is harsh,” Raducanu shared. “The set lasts more than an hour. You can only enjoy the hardship and hard on the pitch. Maria has played an excellent match and the conditions that match her energetic play. I need to prepare for the couple and avoid the heat.