Katie Boulter-Emma Raducanu clash nears as British No. 1 downs Magdalena Frech in Nottingham, Naomi Osaka beaten
Updated 14/06/2024 at 21:24 GMT+1
Katie Boulter set up a potential blockbuster all-British semi-final against Emma Raducanu at the Rothesay Open with a comfortable victory over Poland’s Magdalena Frech. Boulter, the defending champion and British No. 1, led 4-2 in the first set when play was halted for rain and returned to complete a 6-2 6-4 win after spending little more than an hour on court.
Katie Boulter v Paula Badosa - Roland-Garros highlights
Video credit: TNT Sports
Britain’s Katie Boulter needed just an hour and 19 minutes to beat Magdalena Frech 6-2 6-4 in a rain-delayed match and move into the semi-finals of the Rothesay Open in Nottingham.
Boulter, who downed Rebecca Marino on Wednesday, is aiming to defend the title she won last year.
The 27-year-old will take on the winner of the all-British clash between Francesca Jones and Emma Raducanu in the last four, which has been delayed until Saturday due to the bad weather.
“The first set I thought there was some really good tennis from me, some of the best I've played,” Boulter said in her on-court interview.
“I'm slowly building some momentum. I'm just really happy to get through today. I can see a rain cloud coming so I just wanted to finish it off as quickly as possible. I can't do any more rain delays.
“It's absolutely awesome to see a lot of Brits doing really well. Last year was myself and Jodie [Burrage] in the final. I played Hev [Heather Watson] in the semis, Harriet [Dart] in the quarters, so I think we're in a really good place.”
British No. 1 Boulter immediately applied pressure on her Polish opponent but failed to convert two break points in the opening game of the match.
The pair split the first four games before Boulter eventually made the breakthrough, the Brit reeling off five games in a row - either side of a rain delay - from 2-1 down to take a one-set advantage.
Frech responded at the start of the second to hold serve and then break for a 2-0 lead, but Boulter hit back emphatically. A run of four straight games saw her assume control before she saved two break points to move 5-3 ahead and keep Frech at bay.
And she completed the victory with a comfortable love service hold to set up a potential blockbuster showdown with Raducanu and ensure there will be a Brit in the final.
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Elsewhere, top seed Ons Jabeur booked her spot in the quarter-finals with a thumping win over Linda Fruhvirtova in the last 16.
The Tunisian lost just three games across the match to progress and set up a meeting with sixth seed Karolina Pliskova.
Fruhvirtova survived a break point in her opening service game to lead 1-0 but that was the only time she would be ahead as Jabeur reeled off six of the next seven games to underline the gulf in class between the pair and claim the first set.
Like the first set, Jabeur failed to convert break points in the opening game of the second, but she soon made amends.
After levelling at 1-1, the 29-year-old secured a hat-trick of breaks to make serene progress into the last eight.
Osaka's Wimbledon preparation suffers setback
Naomi Osaka’s Wimbledon preparation suffered a setback after she was beaten in three sets by Bianca Andreescu in the quarter-finals of the Libema Open.
The Japanese star had not dropped a set in reaching the last eight in the Netherlands but lost the opener to Andreescu before fighting back to force a decider.
Osaka then dug deep to find a break when her opponent served for the match, but Andreescu eventually sealed a 6-4 3-6 7-6(3) win in two hours and 22 minutes.
Andreescu will meet Dalma Galfi in the semi-finals after the Hungarian breezed past Aleksandra Krunic in straight sets.
Osaka, a hard-court specialist, has never been past the third round at Wimbledon and lost her opening match on her most recent appearance at the All England Club in 2019.
She had, however, shown good form on the grass in Holland in her first two matches.
In a tight first set against Andreescu that went with serve until 3-3, it was the Swiss player who found the decisive breakthrough and then saved a break point when serving for the set to take a crucial early lead.
But Osaka bounced back to take a 5-0 lead in the second before eventually getting over the line on her fourth set point.
There was more drama in the decider. Andreescu broke in the sixth game and then served for the match at 5-3, only for Osaka to respond and send it to a tie-break.
Osaka then took 3-2 lead in the breaker but Andreescu reeled off four points in a row to claim a big scalp.
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