Dominika Cibulkova saved three match points and scored an upset win over the number three ranked woman in the world, Agnieszka Radwanska, to advance to the semi-finals at the Sony Open for the first time in her career. The 3-6 7-6 (5) 6-3 win also ensured that the Slovakian will take a place in the top 10 of the WTA rankings for the first time in her career.
Cibulkova started slowly racking up unforced errors and falling behind Radwanska before finding her game and picking up the comeback, upset victory. Overall, Cibulkova committed 51 unforced errors in the three set match, but continued to battle to get the victory in a match that took nearly two hours and forty minutes.
“This win really means a lot to me,” Cibulkova said. “It’s always tough to play Aga, but I knew I just had to stay aggressive. If you make some mistakes with Aga you still have to stay aggressive. That’s the way I play, and it’s the only way to beat her. I had to keep it going.”
“I knew before the match that this was the match I needed to win to become Top 10,” Cibulkova said. “So it was some more pressure, but I’m obviously very happy with the way I handled it on the court today.”
Dominika Cibulkova will face Li Na in the semis. Na became the first Chinese woman to reach the Key Biscayne semi-finals when she beat Caroline Wozniacki 7-5 7-5.
The other semi-final will see Maria Sharapova take on six-time Sony Open champion Serena Williams.
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