CHARLESTON: World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty continued her quest for a second straight title after rallying past Shelby Rogers to reach the quarter-finals at the WTA claycourt tournament on Thursday night.

The top seed Australian hadn’t played in an 11-month stretch from February 2020 until the Yarra Valley Classic in Melbourne in January due to the coronavirus pandemic. She’s gone 18-2 since her return with a pair of championships including last week’s Miami Open.

Rogers, the 28-year-old from nearby Mount Pleasant, gave Barty a challenge, charging from behind to win the second set and tying things at 4-all in the third.

But the Australian won the last two games to close out the match, 7-6 (7-3), 4-6, 6-4, at the season’s first clay-court event.

“It has been a very quick turnaround,” Barty said of changing surfaces. “I’m still allowing myself time to get used to that. But with each match, that will get better and better.”

Barty was due to face Paula Badosa of Spain on Friday for a spot in the semi-finals after Badosa defeated American Catherine McNally 6-3, 6-3.

Barty is the only one of the top eight seeds still around.

Others in the final eight include former US Open champion Sloane Stephens, who hadn’t advanced to a tournament quarter-final since the French Open in 2019.

Stephens, the American who won her only Grand Slam title in 2017, ousted Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 6-4. Stephens will play for a spot in the last-four against Russian Veronika Kudermetova. Kudermetova, seeded 15th in the season’s first clay-court event, topped Kurumi Nara of Japan 6-0, 6-3.

Stephens had been on a slide the past two seasons, falling from No. 3 in the world to 57th entering this event. But she’s won three times here, winning 11 of the final 12 points against Tomljanovic.

Also reaching the quarters is the youngest competitor here in 17-year-old American Coco Gauff, the 14th seed who defeated countrywoman Lauren Davis 6-2, 7-6 (7-2).

Gauff has advanced to the last-eight round in three of last four tournaments. She said when she lost several points in a row in the second set against Davis, she snapped herself back into the match.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, seeded third, fell to Danka Kovinic of Montenegro, 6-4, 6-1.

The sixth seed, Garbine Muguruza of Spain, was ahead in her match with Yulia Puntintseva of Kazakhstan before retiring with a left leg injury.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2021