Claire Liu looms as Dart reaches Guangzhou Open semi-final
Britain's Harriet Dart reached her second career WTA Tour semi-final by beating fifth seed Paula Badosa 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 at the Guangzhou Open. Claire Liu or Chinese wildcard Sun Xinran awaits her in Saturday's last four after Dart's two-hour, 15-minute comeback win.
The result, reported by the BBC, puts the world No. 115 into rare late-round territory on the WTA Tour. Dart, 30, came through qualifying and had already beaten second seed Janice Tjen before upsetting Spain's Badosa, ranked 61st, at Nansha International Tennis Centre.
Key Takeaways
- Dart beat fifth seed Paula Badosa 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 in two hours and 15 minutes.
- It is only her second WTA Tour semi-final, after the Transylvania Open in Cluj-Napoca.
- She will face Claire Liu or 16-year-old Chinese wildcard Sun Xinran on Saturday.
- Badosa took two medical timeouts and appeared to struggle with the heat.
- Pre-match models had favored Badosa, making Dart's fightback a clear upset.
How did Harriet Dart beat Paula Badosa?
Dart lost her opening service game in the first set, broke back to level at 3-3, then dropped the set as Badosa broke again for 5-3 and served it out. The Briton seized control in the second, exchanging early breaks before taking the set 6-2 to force a decider.
In the third set Badosa saved a match point at 5-3 and broke Dart's serve. Running on empty in her next service game, the Spaniard was broken to love as Dart closed 6-4. Badosa needed two medical timeouts during the match amid the heat.
"It was an incredible battle. I thought Paula started really strongly. I was always behind, and knew it was going to be an incredibly tough match," Dart said. "I really needed to hang in there during the tough moments and wait for a chance."
Why does Claire Liu matter for Dart's semi-final?
Claire Liu is one of two possible semi-final opponents. Dart will meet either the American or Sun Xinran, the 16-year-old Chinese wildcard, in the last four on Saturday. That matchup is the clearest near-term test of whether Dart can turn this Guangzhou run into a WTA final.
Her only previous tour semi-final came at the Transylvania Open in Cluj-Napoca, where she lost in straight sets to Karolina Pliskova. "It's been a very long time since I've been in the business end of the tournament so I am really excited for that," she said after beating Badosa.
Was Dart expected to reach the Guangzhou last four?
Not by the numbers that circulated before the quarter-final. A Dimers model gave Badosa a 68% chance of winning Friday's match, with moneyline odds listing Dart as a clear underdog. Dart's path—qualifying, a win over second seed Tjen, then a three-set comeback against the fifth seed—underlines how far she has gone against the grain.
For readers tracking tournament storylines beyond the baseline, more coverage lives in our Future Tech & AI Wonders hub. Tennis is stressful, Dart noted, and another Saturday chance to compete is the opportunity she wanted after hanging on through the tough moments against Badosa.