Australian Open 2022: In her 63rd try, Alize Cornet makes Grand Slam quarter-finals

Alize Cornet has finally reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament in her 63rd attempt.The 32-year-old Cornet survived a second-set meltdown to advance to the last eight at the Australian Open with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win over two-time major winner Simona Halep.“It’s never too late to try again!” Cornet said in her on-court TV interview. “To be in my first quarterfinal. It’s a dream come true."The journey goes on. I still can’t believe it. Cornet led by a set and 3-1 before losing five consecutive games and 16 straight points to send the match to a decider.Halep saved two match points on her serve in the ninth game before Cornet clinched the match in the 10th. She dropped to her knees on the court and clasped her hands together, putting them over her face before looking into the stadium at her support team.“It feels amazing,” said Cornet, who is playing in her 17th Australian Open. “The battle we had with Simone, with this heat. After 30 minutes, we were dying.”Cornet will next play Danielle Collins, who beat 19th-seeded Elise Mertens 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.in an almost three-hour match to open play on Rod Laver Arena. Collins was a semifinalist in Australia in 2019.Cornet has never made it past the fourth round since making her Grand Slam singles debut as a wild-card entry at the 2005 French Open.Both women's matches on Day 8 were played in temperatures of up to 34 Celsius (93 F). Cornet used bags of ice to cool down her head during changeovers, and draped cold towels over her neck.“I just stopped thinking after . . . 30 minutes of playing. My brain was already like, overloaded,” Cornet said. “My vision was not clear anymore. My hands were shaking.”But, she added, “I thought, on the other side of the court, she was not feeling much better than me.”Cornet, playing in her 60th Grand Slam tournament in a row, was 0-5 in fourth-round matches at the majors before Monday.Her victory over Halep, a former Wimbledon and French Open champion and runner-up in Australia, gave her a record for most appearances at a major before reaching the last eight. Tamarine Tanasugarn previously held the mark at 45, set at Wimbledon in 2008.Cornet had to do the hard way, too. Cornet beat third-seeded Garbiñe Muguruza in straight sets in the second round but had to rally from 6-4, 4-1 down to beat 2021 French Open semifinalist Tamara Zidansek in a 2-hour, 43-minute third-round win.Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.