Strasbourg Open: Samsonova knocks out Badosa to make last four
Liudmila Samsonova edged out Paula Badosa 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 on Thursday afternoon. She’ll face American Danielle Collins in the next round
Liudmila Samsonova 2024 – Chryslene Caillaud / Panoramic
Liudmila Samsonova, the No 8 seed, edged out Paula Badosa, the No 3 seed, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 to move into the last four of the Strasbourg Open at the Tennis Club de Strasbourg, as seen with the odds on Betfree.ie.
The Spaniard was competing in her first match since the Miami Open, as she continues to manage an ongoing back injury that has frequently kept her away from the tour in recent years.
“Every day I wake up with fear. I’m not deceiving you, this week I had to send messages to Pol [Toledo] at 05:00 in the morning because I couldn’t sleep, I can’t handle the question of whether my back will be fine that day or if I’ll be able to lead a normal life. Mentally it is what is costing me the most.” said the world N.10 in a recent interview with Eurosport.
Badosa was forced to withdraw from her third-round match in Florida against Alexandra Eala with the issue before pulling out of Madrid and Rome.
But she was in fine form today, giving the eighth-seeded Russian a tough test before Samsonova’s match sharpness eventually proved the difference in a close final set.
Samsonova, ranked No 19, will face American Danielle Collins next, while Badosa’s next match will be an intriguing first-round encounter with Naomi Osaka at Roland-Garros, which gets underway this Sunday.
Ahead of her victory, the Russian beat Linda Noskova (6-1, 7-5) and French wildcard Diane Parry (6-4, 6-4).
Badosa, ranked No 10, benefited from the abandonment of lucky loser Marie Bouzkova (3-3) in the previous round of the Strasbourg tournament.
Strasbourg WTA 500, other last-eight results (Tennis Club de Strasbourg, clay, EUR 925.661, most recent results first):
- Anna Kalinskaya vs. Danielle Collins
- Beatriz Haddad Maia (9) beat Emma Navarro (2): 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2
- Elena Rybakina (4) beat Magda Linette: 7-5, 6-3
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