Greek tennis star Maria Sakkari is hoping for a big Greek turn-out in New York tonight as she takes on world number four Karolina Pliskova in the quarterfinals of the US Open at 7:00pm EST.
Sakkari, ranked 17th in the world, has been buoyed by a vocal support base during this year’s tournament at The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens.
In her last match, that support helped her come from a set down to win one of the tournament’s most spectacular matches, claiming a 6-7, 7-6, 6-3 victory over Canadian Bianca Andreescu.
The match lasted 3.5 hours, ending at 2:13 a.m, to make it the latest finish in women’s US Open history.
“I mean, there was a decent crowd staying until 2:30 at night,” Sakkari said after the match. “I said, Maria, you cannot give up. Just stay focused and stay calm and just make balls.”
The Greek ace also paid tribute to her fans on Instagram, where she has 316,000 followers.
Next up for Sakkari is tonight’s match against Pliskova as she goes for a spot in her second Slam semifinal of the season. The two women have split their previous two matches, both of which came on the clay in Rome.
