Anastasia Potapova beats Karolina Pliskova in Madrid Open

Russian Anastasia Potapova has made history at the Madrid Open by becoming the first lucky loser to reach a WTA 1000 semi-final after a remarkable victory over former world number one Karolina Pliskova.

The Russian player, 25, initially lost in qualifying last week but was granted a place in the main draw following a late withdrawal. 

She has since taken full advantage of her second chance, continuing a sensational run in the Spanish capital.

Potapova produced one of the standout performances of the tournament, defeating Pliskova 6-1, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3 in a gripping quarter-final.

She dominated the opening set in just 24 minutes and came within touching distance of victory in the second, earning three match points before Pliskova fought back to level the contest in a tiebreak.

The Czech star then moved ahead 3-1 in the deciding set, but Potapova responded superbly, winning five consecutive games to regain control. She sealed the match in emphatic fashion with her 10th ace before collapsing to the court in celebration.

Earlier in the tournament, Potapova had already stunned major names including former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko and world number two Elena Rybakina, underlining the scale of her breakthrough run.

Speaking after her victory, she admitted she never believed a semi-final appearance was possible after her qualifying defeat, describing the opportunity as a “second chance” she was determined to seize.

She now moves on to face 26th seed Marta Kostyuk in the last four, after the Ukrainian comfortably defeated Czech teenager Linda Noskova 7-6 (7-1), 6-0.

In the men’s draw, Jannik Sinner also progressed to the semi-finals, extending his impressive winning streak to 21 matches.