“My vision was not clear, my hand was shaking” Alize Cornet wins a THRILLER against Simona Halep at Australian Open 2022
Simona Halep and Alize Cornet
World No. 61 Alize Cornet takes down 2-time Grand Slam champion and former World No. 1 Simona Halep to reach her first-ever career Grand Slam quarter-final. Cornet won the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in a marathon 2 hour and 33-minute match on the Rod Laver Arena to reach the quarter-finals of the 2022 Australian Open.
Simona had 0 aces, 1 double fault, 27 winners, 41 unforced errors and ended with 93 points to her name. Cornet had 1 ace, 9 double faults, 22 winners, 46 unforced errors and finished the match with 88 points. Despite winning fewer points, Cornet managed to win the match as she won the important points and closed out the match on her 3rd match point.
“Sorry for being emotional. I wanted to play against you (Jelena Dokic) so bad in 2009. I loved your game and wanted to play against you but it was painful, 13 years later I am still here and you are also here so it feels amazing. The battle with Simona was hard, the conditions were hard after 30 minutes we both were dying on the court. And we kept going for two and half hours with all our hearts.
“But congrats to her, she struggled a lot, she is such a fine example. Defeating her to reach the first quarter-final is such a dream come true. It is never too late to try again. I don’t know, I think I just stopped thinking after 30 minutes of play. My brain was already over and my vision was not clear anymore my hand was shaking,” said Cornet as both the players were visibly tired and exhausted.
“She was not feeling much better than me and so my box helped me so much they helped me and even you guys (spectators) thank you. That’s why we play tennis so that I can share these emotions with you and the journey goes on and I want to share it with you,” added an emotional Cornet during her on-court interview with Jelena Dokic.
Alize Cornet celebrates a special birthday this year
Cornet celebrated her birthday on 22nd January, the day she won her 3rd round match. It was a wonderful gift to her as she reached the 4th round. When asked about how did she celebrate the birthday, Cornet told how she celebrated the day with her team.
“I had some flowers huge flowers on the bed after the match and then we went for dinner but it was packed on a Saturday night in Melbourne, the atmosphere was great. I had a birthday present from the tournament as well, they gave me a cheesecake. so I had the energy for today and I have energy for weeks now,” said Cornet.
“I just want to thank my box. Wait, wait. I want to tell you something. How you moved on in your life. I think we can all congratulate you. You were an amazing player now you are an amazing commentator.” added Cornet as she went on to hug Dokic as both the players shared an emotional hug as the crowd gave a huge roar of applause.
Cornet will now play Daniell Collins in the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam later this week.
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Sarthak Shitole
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