By Tony Fairbairn
- Coco Gauff [6] v Karolina Muchova [10]
- Aryna Sabalenka [2] v Madison Keys [17]
NEW YORK, USA – Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka look to overcome Grand Slam finalists in their bid to reach the US Open final on women’s semi-finals day.
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Coco Gauff [6] v Karolina Muchova [10] | H2H: Gauff leads 1-0
Coco Gauff is two wins away from her Grand Slam dream coming true after thrashing Jelena Ostapenko to reach the final four at the US Open. Expectation has been on Gauff to win a Grand Slam since her breakthrough at Wimbledon a few years ago and now the American is on the verge of achieving her childhood dream as she looks to write a new chapter in American women’s tennis. Standing in Gauff’s way is Roland Garros finalist Karolina Muchova with the tenth seed continuing her consistent year at big events as she looks to take her mix of variety and power to a second Grand Slam final this year.
H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Coco Gauff [6] v Karolina Muchova [10] | H2H: Gauff leads 1-0 |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $775,000 |
| First on Arthur Ashe Stadium (Midnight BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
Gauff is the first American teenager since Serena Williams in 2001 to reach the semi-finals at the US Open after an impressive tournament which has seen her back up her Cincinnati title. The American may never get a better chance to win a Grand Slam and will now look to use her confidence and momentum to play the best tennis of her life as she looks to achieve history in New York.
Next for Gauff is Roland Garros finalist Muchova who has continued to frustrate her opponents with a mixture of slice and power as she is into another Grand Slam semi-final. Muchova’s confidence has continued to rise throughout the season as the tenth seed now looks to win a Grand Slam, two months after losing her first Grand Slam final.
After her win over Ostapenko, Gauff admitted that she feels emotionally fresh and spoke about her run at this year’s US Open.
“Today was the best match I’ve played [in the tournament], for sure,” Gauff told the WTA website.
“Even though it wasn’t how I like to play, against her it’s so hard to be the aggressor sometimes. The way decision-making is probably the best I’ve had, and I feel really confident in all my strokes.
“Right now I feel emotionally fresh, which I think was the problem in the past in Grand Slams, I would emotionally be drained. I think this is one of the harder runs I’ve had to the quarterfinal stage. Obviously never got to semis, but I don’t know, I just feel so fresh, to be honest.
“I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been tricking myself or maybe when this is over I’m going to hit a wall. But I’m really proud of how I’m able to get through these matches.”
Meanwhile Muchova spoke about perspective and didn’t imagine herself to be in a position where she would be one win away from a second Grand Slam final.
“I don’t think I thought about anything at the start of the year,” Muchova told the WTA website.
“I really just wanted to play, wanted to get some matches that I was obviously missing, because I didn’t play much last year, so I just was taking it match by match. I was in my head really, like, I’ll see how it goes.
“It’s really incredible how fast it went, actually. I’m super, super happy for it, and I just appreciate it a lot.”
Gauff will continue to dictate from the baseline with her power while using her backhand to open up space on the court. Meanwhile Muchova will look to use her slice to mix up the pace of the rallies while also being aggressive and proactive as she looks to come into the net to finish off points efficiently.
This will be an intriguing contest with Gauff looking to replicate her performance in the Cincinnati final against Muchova. However Muchova’s confidence and tactical variety sees her as slight favourite in what should be a tense evening on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Prediction: Muchova in three sets.
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Aryna Sabalenka [2] v Madison Keys [17] | H2H: Sabalenka leads 2-1
It has been a successful tournament for Aryna Sabalenka as she has claimed the world number one spot for the first time in her career after Iga Swiatek’s exit from New York. However the Australian Open champion would love nothing more than to end the Grand Slam season exactly how she started it as she has been in dominant form so far at the US Open. The next obstacle for Sabalenka to negotiate is former finalist Madison Keys who enters the semi-finals in good form having thrashed Jessica Pegula and Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova in successive matches.
H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Aryna Sabalenka [2] v Madison Keys [17] | H2H: Sabalenka leads 2-1 |
| US Open 2023 | New York, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $775,000 |
| Second on Arthur Ashe Stadium (01:30 BST) | Sky/Now TV Subscription Required |
After a sloppy last couple of months, Sabalenka is back to dominant form as she has gone through the first five rounds without dropping a set. The Australian Open champion is now two wins away from sealing her place at the top of the WTA rankings in style as she aims for a second Grand Slam title of her career.
Next for Sabalenka is former finalist Keys who has been in incredible form in the last two matches as she looks to finally secure the Grand Slam title that she has been working hard to achieve. After years of disappointment and injuries the American is now looking to take a massive opportunity and secure two big wins in what would be the biggest title of her career.
After her semi-final win Sabalenka admitted she is super proud but acknowledges how much of a role the American crowd will play in the semi-final.
“I’m super proud of myself and my team that we have been able to adjust to different conditions, different court,” Sabalenka told the US Open website.
“We were able to bring this consistency in my game… It’s just unbelievable and I’m just super happy right now that I’m being able to do this.
“Of course they will support her more than me. I’ve had this experience playing in stadiums where people were supporting my opponents, so it’s not going to bother me anyhow. I’ll just try to stay focused and try to play my best tennis. I know that I have my team in the box. I have my friends in the stadium who are cheering for me. I have my family, and it’s enough for me.”
As for Keys, the American has praised her game under pressure and admits she has peaked at the right time.
“I think that it’s obviously I just kind of find another gear when it comes to Slams,” Keys told the US Open website.
“I think part of it is that I put a little bit more pressure on myself, which is a good thing and also a bad thing sometimes. I have just kind of peaked at the right time.
“I think sometimes I do it well and sometimes I do it really badly. But I think it’s just kind of reminding yourself that these are the matches that you grow up dreaming of. These are the moments you want to be in. So [there is] that pressure of the big stage, but also just the reminder of this is literally what we have all dreamed of.
“These are the moments that you’re practicing for and you’re playing for and you’re constantly trying to get back to. So it’s a little bit of pressure, but it’s also a little bit of a freeing moment of, I mean, I’m just going to go out and try to do the best that I can.”
Sabalenka will look to keep up her consistent high standard of play as she looks to be as aggressive as possible. Meanwhile Keys will look to use her forehand to gain control of the rally as she will look to remain on the front foot at all times.
There will be a lot of battered tennis balls after this match in which both players will look to be proactive and aggressive in the rallies. Sabalenka starts as slight favourite but the second seed has lost five of her six Grand Slam semi-finals and with the crowd against her, the pressure might start to tell if this becomes a close match.
Prediction: Keys in three sets.
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