At La Caja Mágica in Madrid, the WTA 1000 women’s tournament has reached its decisive stage: for the first time in the event’s history, none of the semifinalists has previously reached the final. All eyes are on the matchups between Mirra Andreeva and Hailey Baptiste, and Marta Kostyuk and Anastasia Potapova. The tournament has already produced a series of surprising results and become a stage for historic achievements.
Sensations and records
The biggest surprise was Hailey Baptiste’s victory over world number one Aryna Sabalenka. The American saved six match points and, for the first time in her career, defeated a top-5 opponent, making her the lowest-ranked player in 40 years to stage such a comeback on clay against the ranking leader. Baptiste has already equaled her best result of the season, having previously reached the semifinals in Abu Dhabi.
Mirra Andreeva, ranked eighth in the world, also reached the Madrid tournament semifinals for the first time. On her way to this stage, she faced serious challenges: in her match against Anna Bondar, Andreeva nearly lost the win but managed to regroup and succeed in the tiebreak. In the next round, the Russian player confidently defeated Leylah Fernandez despite emotional pressure. Andreeva became the youngest player since the 1990s to reach the quarterfinals of the same WTA 1000 tournament three times in a row.
Kostyuk and Potapova: A battle for a chance
The second semifinal pair — Marta Kostyuk and Anastasia Potapova — also drew the attention of experts. Kostyuk has been showing consistent form: she has not lost a set on her way to the semifinals and has extended her winning streak to nine matches, claiming her second title in Rouen. In the quarterfinals, the Ukrainian confidently defeated Linda Noskova, converting a record number of break points among WTA 1000 tournaments this season.
Anastasia Potapova became the first lucky loser in the tournament’s history to reach the WTA 1000 semifinals. After losing in qualifying, she got the chance to replace Madison Keys and made the most of it: on her way to the semifinals, Potapova beat world No.2 Elena Rybakina and pulled off an impressive comeback against Karolina Pliskova, winning four games in a row in the deciding set. According to Potapova, her success is the result of hard work and knowing how to make the most of a second chance.
Schedule and expectations
The semifinal matches will take place on the main court at Estadio Manolo Santana: the meeting between Andreeva and Baptiste is scheduled for the evening, while Kostyuk and Potapova will play in the night session. All four tennis players are contending for a spot in the Madrid final for the first time, adding intrigue and making the outcome of the matches unpredictable.
The current women’s tournament in Madrid has already become one of the most talked-about events in Spanish sports circles. Interest in what is happening at La Caja Mágica rivals recent internal conflicts in other areas of Madrid life, as previously reported in the article about the confrontation between supporters of Mónica García and Emilio Delgado in the Más Madrid party — details here.
