Unseeded Romanian Sorana Cirstea earned the biggest win of her career with a 6–4, 6–4 victory over Australian Open champion and world number two Aryna Sabalenka on Wednesday, March 29, to reach the Miami Open semi-final.
Cirstea, who has yet to drop a set in Miami and is the last unseeded player in the draw, delivered a stunning performance while taking advantage of some untimely double faults to become only the third person to beat Sabalenka this year.
With the win, the 32-year-old Cirstea reached her second WTA 1000 semi-final nearly 10 years after reaching her first.
“I am a bit speechless,” said world number 74 Cirstea. “I came out knowing that it was going to be a really tough match….