MELBOURNE, Australia – Ash Barty was defeated on Wednesday by 25th-placed Karolina Muchova in the Australian Open quarterfinals 1-6, 6-3 and 6-2.
Muchova won his first semifinal spot in a Grand Slam. Her return victory ended Barty’s attempt to become the first Australian woman to win the title in Melbourne since Chris O’Neil in 1978.
Muchova played poorly at the start of his second great quarterfinal and Barty ran to a 5-0 lead, losing just six points. After nine games, Muchova had a winner and 18 unforced errors.
At the start of the second set, Muchova had an injury timeout that lasted almost 10 minutes. The medical staff measured her pulse and temperature before she left the court, and when the Czech returned, she played much better.
Muchova’s opponent on Thursday will be the winner of the last quarter-finals, a totally American clash between 22nd place Jennifer Brady and non-champion Jessica Pegula.
The twists have been a milestone in the tournament for Muchova, who has recovered in previous matches to win sets after losing 5-0 and 4-0.
Against Barty, she started to enter the court to hit her ground hits earlier. Barty, pushed behind the baseline, became undecided and erratic.
Over a period, Muchova won eight of nine games. Barty ended with 37 unforced errors and lost his service four times in the final two sets.
Muchova’s only other victory over one of the top five players was against No. 3 Karolina Pliskova at Wimbledon in 2019.