British No 1 will meet the fifth seed Elina Svitolina in the last eight
Monday 2 September 2019 20:35, UK
Johanna Konta beat Karolina Pliskova 6-7 (1-7) 6-3 7-5 to progress into the quarter-finals of the US Open for the first time.
The British No 1 secured her victory the hard way as she came from a set and 3-1 down before keeping her composure to take the decider in style, with ruthless hitting off both wings.
Konta's triumph results in her third appearance in the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam this season and the fifth in her career.
The 28-year-old will encounter the fifth seed Elina Svitolina in the last eight. Svitolina dashed home hopes as she beat the 10th seed and former finalist Madison Keys 7-5 6-4 on Sunday night.
Konta had lost six of her previous seven matches with Pliskova, including twice on her home turf of Eastbourne, as well as in Nottingham and Birmingham.
In New York, this was a see-saw of a match and Konta held two points for a double break in the first set, before being pegged back and then blown away 7-1 in the tie-break.
The second set commenced with the British No 1 being broken before a hold to love stopped Pliskova's momentum and three break points were engineered.
A run of eight points in a row brought Konta level at 3-3 and another break had her opponent feeling the heat.
Then, at 5-3 two break points were saved, the first with a sensational forehand down the line, the second with a meaty volley, and when the Czech went long Konta levelled the match at a set apiece.
In a nip-and-tuck final set, Konta produced a gutsy hold to love for 5-5, and then broke to 15 to serve for the match.
One match point came and went, but when the second arrived and Pliskova's return floated out, Konta raised her arms in celebration.
"The key was to just keep going," said the 28-year-old after the tense encounter.
"You know with Karolina there will be massive portions of the match where I don't really know what I'm doing. I'm pleased to have played a great match.
"I've been in this position twice before here, so to go one step further is a massive achievement for me. Now I'm hoping to go two or three steps further."
