3 minute read

Daria Saville has continued her recent outstanding form, gaining a hard-fought victory over Lucia Bronzetti to reach the last eight of the Miami Open.

Daria Saville has maintained her excellent recent form to come from a set down and survive a match point to beat Lucia Bronzetti and reach the Miami Open quarter-finals for the first time.

Saville prevailed 5-7 6-4 7-5 to make it nine wins in her past 11 tour matches and advance to the last eight at a WTA 1000 event for the first time since Rome 2017

The world No.249 becomes the lowest-ranked quarter-finalist in tournament history and just the fourth wildcard to go this deep -- after Justine Henin in 2010, Venus Williams in 2012 and Victoria Azarenka in 2018.

In a bruising encounter featuring plenty of punishing rallies, Saville led 3-0 with a double break before lucky loser Bronzetti bounced back to take the opening set.

Saville disappeared for a toilet break -- having originally arrived with her shirt inside out and had to change courtside -- and broke in the third game to establish an advantage she did not relinquish.

In the final set Bronzetti broke to lead 5-3.

Saville immediately broke back but Bronzetti forced a match point in the 10th game that Saville saved.

The Australian then broke her Italian opponent to love in the next game and served out the match, closing out the three-hour encounter with a swinging forehand volley.

Former world No.20 Saville, who is on the comeback trail from injury which included achilles surgery last year, will face Olympic champion Belinda Bencic for a spot in the semi-finals.

Swiss 22nd-seed Bencic defeated Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-2 6-3.

Saville has climbed a staggering 500 spots in the world rankings since mid-February; she was 627th in the world and could make the top 100 if she beats Bencic.