Paula Badosa became the eighth and final quarterfinalist at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia with a 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-2 win over Karolina Muchova on Tuesday in Rome.
The match, moved back from Monday because of rain, lasted 3 hours and 4 minutes, but Badosa leveled her career head-to-head against Muchova with the three-set triumph. (Muchova was a winner in straight sets when they played at Wimbledon two years ago.)
Badosa moves through to a quarterfinal meeting against Jelena Ostapenko, who defeated No.8 seed Daria Kasatkina in three sets in her own fourth-round match.
How the match was won: Badosa won the first set from a break down, came from 5-3 down to lead 6-5 in the second set but ultimately needed a third set to claim victory.Â
The Spaniard broke serve in the first game of the final set and never looked back. She only lost five points in four service games of the set and added an insurance break in the seventh game after denying Muchova a game point.Â
An absolute ripper of a return ⚡@paulabadosa | #IBI23 pic.twitter.com/1N9hM06BL8
— wta (@WTA) May 16, 2023
Words from the winner: "I'm super proud, especially mentally. It was so tough," Badosa said afterward. "She was playing a very high level. I think we both played an amazing match. I'm very happy I got through this one, because it was very important for me.
"We were both pushing each other a lot. She was playing amazing, and then I was playing very well, so it was like a rollercoaster match. The second set was super tough and for me, the third set, it was tough mentally to reset, but I'm really pleased that I could do that."
Stat of the day: Badosa's victory was the 32nd match this year to last more than 3 hours, and third in Rome.
Marathon Marvels 2023: All this year's three-hour matches
Scouting Badosa vs. Ostapenko: Badosa has beaten Ostapenko in two of their previous three meetings. Their first meeting came at Roland Garros in 2020, their only prior meeting on clay to date. Badosa won that match, 6-4, 6-3 and she also won their last meeting in Sydney in 2022.