#AshleighBarty looks to continue her stunning 2019 with a deep run at the #FrenchOpen, but she will meet some tough resistance from last year’s semifinalist #MadisonKeys as the pair are set for an intriguing battle in the last eight.
Barty, who has been one of the most outstanding performers this year, continued to impress with a strong run to the quarterfinals for the first time in her career. The Australian will be looking to go one step further by reaching the last four, and she is projected to rise into the top-five of the rankings and could even leave Paris as the second-ranked player by winning the title.
Keys, a defending semifinalist here at #RolandGarros, will look to repeat her result from last year as she continues to do wonder on clay, which was thought to be her least preferred surface. The American is into her second quarterfinal here in Paris and will retain her place in the top-20 despite facing a huge risk of a drop in ranking coming into the tournament.
Road to the Quarterfinals: Keys
The 14th seed began her Paris campaign with a stunner — blasting her way past veteran Evgeniya Rodina 6-1, 6-2 after hitting 28 winners in just 56 minutes of action. It was a terrific win not only because of the scoreline but also due to the fact that the Russian stunned her at Wimbledon last year.
Keys surprisingly struggled against wildcard Priscilla Hon in a match which spanned over two days due to fading light, but she still managed to remain composed and fired 15 winners en route to a tough 7-5, 5-7, 6-3 win to seal her place in the third round.
The American once again faced tough opposition in qualifier Anna Blinkova. The Russian was known for her extraordinary comebacks at Roland Garros this week and it seemed like Keys will be the victim of a huge upset after missing out on a match point in the second set and found herself in huge trouble in the decider. Nonetheless, the defending semifinalist fought her way back, eventually digging out this win after an hour and 54 minutes of play.
Facing the conqueror of world number one Osaka, Keys knew that she had to up her game against Katerina Siniakova. Amidst a series of unforced errors, the big-serving 14th seed was able to gather her best tennis during the crucial moments, ultimately sealing the straightforward 6-2, 6-4 win to seal her spot in the quarterfinals.
Road to the Quarterfinals: Barty
Barty began her pursuit for a maiden Grand Slam title with a bang; defeating Jessica Pegula within just an hour of play as she blasted 17 winners past the American to claim the solid 6-3, 6-3 win. It was not the best performance from the Australian but it was a good start to her campaign as she gradually adapted to the courts in Paris.
Going up against the Australian Open semifinalist Danielle Collins in a tough second round, Barty snatched a terrific straight-sets victory after just 78 minutes of play, overpowering and out-crafting the world number 36 to book a spot in the third round. This was the first time in her career that she had progressed past the second round at the French Open.
Barty’s best match at the tournament thus far has to be her 6-3, 6-1 masterclass over former semifinalist Andrea Petkovic, whereby she produced 20 winners to just 11 unforced errors as she saved the sole break point she faced throughout the encounter. Serving eight aces along the way, it was a perfect match played by the eighth seed, who knew that a possible encounter with Serena Williams was awaiting next.
Surprisingly, Barty’s fourth-round opponent turned out to be the ever-dangerous Sofia Kenin, who had upset Williams the round before. Extending her dominance over the American, Barty claimed her third consecutive win against Kenin although this time it was much tougher as she dropped a set en route to her 90-minute victory.
Match Analysis: Can Barty slice her way to the win or will Keys blast her way to triumph?
Keys and Barty split their two professional meetings evenly — with the American taking their lone clay-court meeting in 2017 while the Australian prevailed rather easily in their Fed Cup clash earlier this year. Surprisingly, it was Keys who triumphed 6-3, 6-2 in their first-round clash here in Paris years ago, but Barty stunned the American crowd when she absolutely dominated an error-strewn Keys from start to finish during their Fed Cup tie this year.
It is known that Keys is a big-tournament player. She has always conserved her best tennis for the Majors as seen through her semifinal appearances at Roland Garros and the US Open last year and only won her first WTA title in two years in Charleston two months ago. Five of her last eight quarterfinals reached were Grand Slam tournaments and that is enough for Keys to maintain her spot in the top-20 consistently.
This will be a new experience for Barty. Despite being slated to reach the top-five after the tournament, she has only reached one quarterfinal at Grand Slam level in her entire career. This will be her biggest match on clay so far, but she has been so impressive throughout the week and it is hard to see her succumb to nerves.
It looks to me that Barty will come into this match as the slight favourite, but if Keys were to fire on all cylinders as she has been in her past matches, it would not be much of a surprise if the American were to prevail. This match will be an absolute battle and neither will be giving her opponent too many short balls to work with.
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