Beatriz Haddad Maia claims historic victory to reach French Open semi-finals

By Sports Desk June 07, 2023

Beatriz Haddad Maia came from a set down to defeat Ons Jabeur and become the first Brazilian woman to reach the French Open semi-finals in the open era.

After battling for nearly four hours to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round, the 14th seed again found herself with work to do after losing the opening set to seventh seed Jabeur.

A very tight second went to a tie-break, which Haddad Maia took, and the Brazilian ran away with the decider to win 3-6 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Haddad Maia, 27, looked utterly stunned at the moment of victory, having never previously gone beyond the fourth round at a slam.

Her results away from the majors have been very impressive, though, and she will hope to follow in the footsteps of Brazilian grand slam champions Gustavo Kuerten and Maria Bueno.

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