The menu has been set for the again sold-out Porsche Arena: a top-class semifinals with three Grand Slam winners. It is something the spoiled tennis fans at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix do not get to see every year. A taste of what is to come on Saturday was provided by the quarterfinals featuring high-class and hard-fought matches. Three of the four Centre Court encounters went to a deciding third set and all the matches lasted longer than two hours – an indication of the excellent field that has once again been in action at the long-standing Stuttgart tournament.
Elena Rybakina booked her semifinals ticket in the first match of the day. The world No. 4 from Kazakhstan clinched the encounter with her first match point - 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 - against the impressive Italian Jasmine Paolini after two hours and eight minutes of absorbing tennis. “Despite losing the set, it was a good game for me,” said Rybakina, who has reached the penultimate round for the first time on her third appearance in Stuttgart. “I hope I’ll go far here. Winning the Porsche would be great motivation to finally learn to drive.”
Marketa Vondrousova’s match was also a tight affair. The reigning Wimbledon champion and world No. 8 lost the first set against the Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka, but then improved from game to game. In the end, she was a deserved 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 winner. “I’m really happy with my performance today,” said the Czech who had previously never progressed further than the last 16 in Stuttgart. “I began playing more aggressively in the second set and managed to stay in the rallies longer. That was the key to my success today.”
The world No. 2 and runner-up in each of the past three years was given a fond send-off by the crowd. Her dream of winning a Porsche is something she can now fulfil in 2025 at the earliest.
The meeting between the Porsche Friend Iga Swiatek and the Porsche Brand Ambassador Emma Raducanu turned out to be the hoped-for high-class match. The first set went to a tiebreak and the second was open for a long time. After more than two hours, the world No. 1 and favourite finally came out on top 7-6(2), 6-3. It meant the Pole, who is yet to lose in the Porsche Arena, still has her sights firmly set on the title hat-trick.
“It was a very intensive match. I’m pleased I took my few chances,” said the four-time Grand Slam champion: “You can see that she had nothing to lose, especially at the start. I therefore had to stay patient, and luckily enough everything worked out.”
Marta Kostyuk remains the tournament’s giant-killer. After beating the world No. 7 Qinwen Zheng (China) on Thursday, the 21-year-old Ukrainian continued her winning ways in the quarterfinals against the No. 3 seeded Coco Gauff. After two hours 48 minutes, the world No. 27 eventually converted her eighth match point to win 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(6). With three three-setters and, in the meantime, almost nine hours of tennis in her legs, Kostyuk is therefore the only unseeded player to have reached the last four. “I honestly don’t know how I managed it. In the end, there were only a few points that made all the difference,” said the exhausted winner who has gone all the way to the penultimate round for the third time in a row. The previous two were San Diego and Indian Wells.
Four players still have hopes of winning the main prize at the 47th Porsche Tennis Grand Prix – a Porsche Taycan 4S Sport Turismo. The first semifinal - not before 2.00 pm - will be between Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina. Afterwards - not before 4.00 pm – Marta Kostyuk will take to court against Marketa Vondrousova.
Laura Siegemund has to withdraw from doubles semifinals
One of the two doubles semifinals will take place before the singles when - beginning at 12.00 noon - Hao-Ching Chan (Taipei) and Veronika Kudermetova will face Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) and Shuai Zhang (China). The second semifinal will however not be played as the No. 2 seeded pairing of Barbora Krejcikova from the Czech Republic and Laura Siegemund have had to withdraw. A back injury has forced the local hero from Porsche Team Germany to pull out. It means Ulrikke Eikeri (Norway) and Ingrid Neel (Estonia) are already through to the final that will be held after the singles final on Sunday.
