World No 1 Ashleigh Barty is beaten in straight sets in shock defeat

Unseeded Spaniard Paula Badosa upset world number one Ashleigh Barty in straight sets to progress to the semi-finals of the Volvo Car Open in Charleston, South Carolina.

The 23-year-old out-served the Australian powerhouse, racking up seven aces on the way to an impressive 6-4, 6-3 victory.

“My coach and I had been talking a lot this morning and [I was] trying to focus on myself,” Badosa said after the match. “I know I’m playing the world No.1, and she’s an amazing player, but I’m on a clay court, I know how to play on clay courts, I like to play on clay courts.

“I knew I had to focus on myself, and of course, if she was better than me today, that could be a possibility, so I’d just have to accept it. But at least I tried to do my game, my serve, my forehand, my backhand, and focus on me, and that’s what I did.

“I had a game plan, and I changed it a little bit because I didn’t know how she played, exactly. Of course, I’ve been seeing her a lot of times before, but I never played against her, so I didn’t know exactly how the ball was going to come,” Badosa assessed.

“I was quite intense with returns. I knew I had to be because she serves very good, she changes the serve a lot, she mixes it up, so I knew I had to be very focused on my returns. Then, of course, I think I served very well.

“That was the key of the match, because I [was] a lot of break points down, but then I could do a good serve, so I am quite happy about that. I think that I was intense on the first two or three balls against her, and I think that was very important today.”

Badosa will take on Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova in the penultimate round, after the 15th seed ousted home favourite Sloane Stephens 6-3 6-4.

Compatriot Coco Gauff also stumbled, falling in straight sets to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur, while Danka Kovinic of Montenegro battled past Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva 6-7 (2) 7-5 6-1.

Meanwhile, Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek, France’s Harmony Tan, Bulgarian Viktoriya Tomova and Colombia’s Maria Osorio Serrano all advanced to the semi-finals of the Copa Colsanitas in Bogota.

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