The 24-year-old came from a set down and saved six match points to secure a hard-fought 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(6) victory in a contest lasting two hours and 30 minutes. The win not only marked the biggest triumph of her career but also ended Sabalenka\u2019s 15-match winning streak on the tour.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Baptiste, who had never beaten a Top 5 opponent prior to this week, has now registered back-to-back wins over top-tier players in Madrid. She had earlier ousted Jasmine Paolini in the third round and, with this result, advanced to her maiden WTA 1000 semifinal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Sabalenka looked in control early in the match, racing through the opening set with a dominant display on serve and from the baseline. The top seed dictated play and capitalised on a slow start from Baptiste to take the set comfortably.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
However, the momentum shifted in the second set as Baptiste raised her level and began to trouble Sabalenka with aggressive shot-making. A series of errors from the Belarusian allowed Baptiste to seize control, as she broke early and maintained her advantage to level the match.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The decider proved to be a tense and closely fought affair. Sabalenka secured the first break and later moved within a game of victory, earning multiple match points while serving for the match. Baptiste, however, showed remarkable composure under pressure, saving all opportunities against her to force the set into a tiebreak.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In the tiebreak, Sabalenka again held a match point, but Baptiste continued her resilient display and won three successive points to seal the victory and complete a memorable comeback.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With this result, Baptiste moves a step closer to a potential Top 30 ranking and will now face ninth seed Mirra Andreeva in the semifinals, who progressed after a straight-sets win over Leylah Fernandez.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
For Sabalenka, the defeat marks a rare setback in an otherwise dominant season, as she missed out on a place in the final four despite being on a 15-match winning streak.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI played her a few weeks ago and it was kind of a close match. I just got broken once in each set. So I had a better idea of how to play her, and how I should play, adjustments I needed to make. So I think I just went in trying to play my game, still doing the same things that I've been doing, but I had a few adjustments I needed to make from the last time we played,\u201d Baptiste said in her post-match press conference.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI wouldn't say that I'm necessarily working on hitting balls outside the alley. But obviously when you're playing points all the time you get into those positions. I actually really enjoy being in those positions, because I feel like I can create shots there. I was able to do it in a really big moment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI played her a few weeks ago and it was kind of a close match. I just got broken once in each set. So I had a better idea of how to play her, and how I should play, adjustments I needed to make. So I think I just went in trying to play my game, still doing the same things that I've been doing, but I had a few adjustments I needed to make from the last time we played,\u201d Baptiste said in her post-match press conference.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Meanwhile, Sabalenka believed that Baptiste played \u2018brave\u2019 tennis as she said, \u201cI feel like in Miami I didn't give her many opportunities. She couldn't break my serve. Here, the first game, second set, I just double-faulted twice out of nowhere. It felt like that gave her belief. After that, she just started playing more aggressively. She was playing brave tennis. What can I say? Well done.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n