Maria Sakkari, teenager Emma Raducanu reach US Open semi-finals in New York

NEW YORK: Maria Sakkari leveraged her powerful serve and excellent court coverage to reach the US Open semi-finals with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday and dedicated her win to the people of Greece, who have endured a summer of brutal wildfires.

Sakkari was rock solid throughout the win on Arthur Ashe Stadium, hounding Pliskova into mistakes and getting an early break before going on take the first set.

The Greek 17th seed maintained the aggression in the second set, converting on break point in the seventh game as 2016 runner-up Pliskova failed to match her intensity.

The Czech, runner-up at Wimbledon this year, committed three double faults and 20 unforced errors in the match before Sakkari wrapped things up in one hour and 22 minutes.

British teenager Emma Raducanu continued her sensational run as she became the first qualifier to make the semi-finals at the US Open, stunning Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in straight sets.

Emma, 18, defeated No. 11 seed Blenda 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 22 minutes.

Just two months after her breakthrough run to the round of 16 in her Grand Slam main-draw debut at Wimbledon, the World No.150 Emma is now into the final four of a major in just her second appearance.

Emma Raducanu is the fourth women's qualifier to reach the semi-finals of a Grand Slam event in the Open Era (since 1968). She joins Christine Dorey (1978 Australian Open), Alexandra Stevenson (1999 Wimbledon), and Nadia Podoroska (2020 Roland Garros) to achieve this feat. She is also just the third woman ranked outside the Top 100 to make it into the US Open semi-finals, joining WTA Legends Billie Jean King in 1979 and Kim Clijsters in 2009. Both King and Clijsters were unranked in those instances; Clijsters went on to win the title, according to information available on the WTA Tour website. Agencies

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