An emotional Mirjana Lucic-Baroni has continued her remarkable run into the Australian Open semi-finals with a topsy-turvy 6-4 3-6 6-4 upset victory over No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova.
It came 18 years after Lucic-Baroni’s only previous grand slam semi-final appearance.
The Croatian then spent many years away from the sport for personal reasons, “I can’t believe it – this is crazy,” said the 34-year-old.
“God is good – that’s really all I can say.”
The world No.79 said one day she would open up fully about all the hardships she has endured before this unexpected late-career renaissance.
“I know this means a lot to any player to reach the semis, but for me it is overwhelming,” she said.
Her reward? A bout with Serena Williams for a ticket into the final.
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