World No. 59 Martina Trevisan said she simply accepted the situation after blowing a match point and decided to start from the beginning and it paid off.
On Tuesday, Trevisan failed to close out the match in straight sets versus Leylah Fernandez but kept her focus to upset the Canadian 6-2 6-7 (3) 6-3 and progress into her maiden Grand Slam semifinal at the French Open.
Trevisan broke Fernandez in the ninth game of the second set to open a 5-4 lead, before failing to serve out for the match in the following game and missing out on a match point.
After getting the break back in the 10th game – Fernandez forced a second set tie-break – which she dominated the force a third set.
Just when it seemed that Fernandez would likely make a stunning comeback win, Trevisan impressively bounced back at the start of the third set as she claimed back-to-back breaks and opened a 4-0 lead.
Fernandez got one break back in the fifth game but Trevisan earned her third break of the set in the sixth game to open a 5-1 lead.
Trevisan failed to serve out for the match in the seventh game but finally served out for the match in the ninth game, in her third attempt.
Trevisan: I accepted the situation
“What I’ve done to stay calm and mentally strong after failing to convert match points in the second set? I looked around me and I was in the most important court in the world,” Trevisan explained. “Even though I felt a lot of tension and I was so nervous because even my arms felt it, but I was happy anyway. I accepted the situation, because, as I say, it was normal to feel the tension because I was playing for my semifinal, and I was one step away from the win. So I accepted the situation and I tried to be focused on every point. That was, I think, the most important thing that I did today. I like the fight. I like the adrenaline. I like the moment before I get on the court, because I feel a lot of energy. So that’s all things that make you alive, you know. I like it all so much.”