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There were a couple of retirements in the quarter-finals at the Eastbourne International on Thursday. Second seed Caroline Garcia, and Jelena Ostapenko were forced to quit their matches midway due to ill-health. Garcia who played ninth seed Daria Kasatkina suffered an injury to her right shoulder that caused her to stop the match.
Kasatkina led the Frenchwoman 6-2, 2-1 when the match came to a stop. After the match, Kasatkina talked about her opponent having to end the match the way she did. She said, “It's always sad to see someone get hurt, especially before a Grand Slam, so I wish Caroline a speedy recovery and to take care of herself.
It's not the best way to get through, of course”. Then, talking about her preparation, she added, “I had to be really focused and try to put as many balls as I can inside the court, and to be aggressive when I can.
This is a bit tricky balance, let's say, and it's not easy to find sometimes”.
Rothesay International: Coco Gauff too good for Jessica Pegula
This is the first time Kasatkina’s made it this far in the event. She’d, however, exited the tournament in the quarter-final stage in both years she’d made it to that round, in 2018 and 2021.
In the semi-finals, Kasatkina will play Camila Giorgi. The Italian also benefited from her opponent’s retirement in their quarter-final match-up. Giorgi led Jelena Ostapenko 7-6(8) when the latter halted the proceedings because she was feeling dizzy.
The retirement meant the Latvian’s victory run of seven matches – going back to the Rothesay Classic last week – came to an end. Meanwhile, this is the third year in a row Giorgi’s made it to the semis in Eastbourne.
At the top of the draw, Madison Keys defeated Petra Martic 6-4, 6-1 in an hour and 17 minutes to make it to the semi-finals. Keys will play fellow American and fifth seed Coco Gauff next. Gauff moved into the semi-finals of the Rothesay International with a 6-3, 6-3 win over third seed and her teammate in doubles, Jessica Pegula. Following the win, Gauff’s now levelled her win-to-loss record against Pegula at 1-1.