Johanna Konta 'really happy' to reach French Open semi-finals
- Published
Johanna Konta has only dropped one set on her way to the semi-finals
2019 French Open women's semi-finals |
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Venue: Roland Garros, Paris Dates: Thursday, 6 June |
Coverage: Live text and radio commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. |
British number one Johanna Konta says she produced one of the best performances of her career to reach the French Open semi-finals.
Konta outclassed American seventh seed Sloane Stephens, last year's runner-up, 6-1 6-4 in the quarter-finals.
"I'm very proud of the level and consistency I played," said the 26th seed.
Konta, 28, is the first British woman to reach the Roland Garros last four since Jo Durie in 1983.
On Thursday she will face Czech 19-year-old Marketa Vondrousova, ranked 38th in the world, with the prospect of a first Grand Slam final awaiting the winner.
"I feel really happy to reach the semi-finals, that is my main feeling," Konta added.
"I am really pleased with how I am training and working every day on something that I enjoy and that I believe in.
"I think that's probably the most satisfying feeling out of this whole thing right now."
Konta will compete in her third Grand Slam semi-final - on a third different surface - after runs to the same stage at the 2016 Australian Open and 2017 Wimbledon.
The Briton had never won a main-draw match at Roland Garros until this year's tournament.
After beating German qualifier Antonia Lottner, American wildcard Lauren Davis and off-colour young Slovak Viktoria Kuzmova in the opening three rounds, Konta impressively dealt with Croatian 23rd seed Donna Vekic as she stepped up a class of opponent.
She had to increase her level even higher against 2017 US Open champion Stephens, producing a display which American great Chris Evert said would have beaten "anybody" in the women's game and had left her "speechless".
"It is hard to pinpoint what is the best performance, because you're always dealing with different types of opponents or different types of conditions," Konta said.
"Or even if you're playing the same opponent, it's still going to be a different match.
"But it's definitely one of my best performances.
"I've experienced so many things in this fortnight that are very individual to this tournament and I'm enjoying it."
Konta's route to the semi-finals | ||
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Match | Opponent | Score |
First round | Antonia Lottner (Ger) | 6-4 6-4 |
Second round | Lauren Davis (US) | 6-3 1-6 6-3 |
Third round | Viktoria Kuzmova (Svk) | 6-2 6-1 |
Fourth round | Donna Vekic (Cro) | 6-2 6-4 |
Quarter-finals | Sloane Stephens (US) | 6-1 6-4 |
'There is not much you can do when someone plays like that'
Konta came under immediate pressure in the opening game of the match, seeing off a break point and a lengthy deuce to hold serve after eight minutes.
That proved pivotal as Konta swatted her lacklustre opponent aside from then on.
The Briton's aggressive approach did the damage as she ended up hitting 25 winners and six aces on her way to taking 87% of first-serve points.
Konta won 18 consecutive service points from the start of the second set, dropping her only point with a double fault in the final game as she won in one hour and 11 minutes.
"I definitely thought I played well behind my serve more than anything," Konta added.
"I kept a good variety in there, which I think made it also difficult for Sloane to find her rhythm in those games."
Stephens, 26, won just 13 receiving points in the match as she struggled to cope with Konta's power and precision.
"She served really well. There is not much you can do when someone is playing like that," the American said.
Stephens also believes windy conditions during the match on Court Philippe Chatrier helped Konta.
"Clay is a neutraliser, but there wasn't very much clay on the court today. So that was a little bit tough," she added.
"She likes to play on hard court and grass, and the court was very fast today, and I think that kind of worked in her favour."
From first-round loser to semi-finalist
Konta at the French Open |
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2015: Comes through qualifying but loses 7-6 4-6 6-2 in first round to Czech Denisa Allertova |
2016: 20th seed loses 6-2 6-3 in first round to Germany's Julia Gorges |
2017: Seeded seventh, loses 1-6 7-6 6-4 in first round to Taiwan's Hsieh Su-wei |
2018: 22nd seed loses 6-4 6-3 in first round to Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva |
2019: 26th seed wins five matches to reach semi-finals |
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