Gauff stunned after losing to Badosa in Australian Open quarters; Zverev beats Paul tennis news
Paula Badosa, who almost quit tennis in 2024, reached her first Grand Slam semi-final with a straight sets win over Gauff.
“Emotional” Paula Badosa shattered world number three Coco Gauff’s dreams of a maiden Australian Open title with a stunning 7-5, 6-4 victory in the quarter-finals in Melbourne.
In a match that lasted one hour and 43 minutes on Tuesday, Badosa reached a Grand Slam semi-final for the first time in her career – the first Spanish woman to do so since Garbine Muguruza in Melbourne in 2020.
“I’m a little emotional,” said Badosa, who will face either her close friend and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a place in the final.
“I am a very emotional person. I wanted to play my best game. I think I did it.
“I’m very proud of the level I delivered today.”
It is a remarkable comeback to tennis for the 11th seed, who was out of the top 100 after suffering a stress fracture in her back a year ago.
“I mean, a year ago, I was here thinking I didn’t know if I was going to retire from this game, and now I’m here playing against the best players in the world,” Badosa said. “
Third-seeded Gauff was unbeaten in nine matches this season, but lost her first set of 2025 before defeating Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic in the last 16.
Badosa started aggressively and put Gauff under pressure early in the first set.
The American, unsurprisingly, failed to create any break points in the first set and her game was marred by unforced errors.
Gauff was far from her offensive best, but said she felt more positive after her fourth-round loss to compatriot Emma Navarro at the US Open.
“Even though I lost today, I feel like I’m on an upward trend,” Gauff told reporters after the match.
“I know what I need to work on.
“I’m obviously disappointed, but I’m not completely disappointed.”
Meanwhile, men’s second seed Alexander Zverev recorded a 7-6 (7-1), 7-6 (7-0), 6-2, 6-1 win over Tommy Paul to book his spot in the last four. Did.
Zverev, who received a warning for swearing after being bothered by a bird’s feather during the quarterfinals, is one of the favorites for the title.
The German trailed by a break in the second set when Paul saved two break points. With the game in the balance, chair umpire Nacho Forcadell called a let and ordered a point to be replayed when he noticed that a white feather had fallen into Zverev’s eye line as the German player was in his backswing.
“What? A feather? There are millions of them on the court,” Zverev said as he approached the official holding a feather.
Zverev held the net for a brief pause before getting back to work, but Paul soon held serve.
The world number two will face the winner of the thrilling quarterfinal between 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic and four-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz.
