A decade after her last 1000-level semifinal, Sorana Cirstea stuns Aryna Sabalenka to reach Miami's final four

INTERVIEW: Cirstea after completing a quarterfinal stunner in South Florida

Sorana Cirstea, 32 and ranked 74th in the world, had never faced Aryna Sabalenka, this year’s Australian Open champion and the second seed at the Miami Open.

Such ignorance was bliss for the Romanian.

In Wednesday’s first match on Hard Rock Stadium, Cirstea showed more comfort, command and confidence in a 6-4, 6-4 quarterfinal stunner. Though Cirstea had never returned Sabalenka’s sometimes-lethal serve before, she quickly found a groove that quickly frustrated the red-hot Belarusian. The veteran won 31.4 percent of first-serve return points (Sabalenka won just 14.8%), Toss in seven double faults—two of which came in break points in the second set—and it led to surprisingly one-way traffic for the majority of this match-up.

Even success seemed to irritate Sabalenka on this day. Down a set a 2-0, the 24-year-old didn’t exactly project positive energy when she held serve, though she carried the momentum to a service break in the next game. She punctuated a hold for 3-2 with two aces.

But Cirstea’s consistency, and Sabalenka’s still shaky serve—which reappeared in her Indian Wells final loss after seemingly vanishing for good—were too much for the favorite overcome. Sabalenka’s returning was another culprit.

“Sabalenka’s forehand return, she just looks to be rushing,” said Caroline Wozniacki, who also won her first Grand Slam title in Melbourne, from the Tennis Channel broadcast booth.

As unforced errors and untimely serving woes mounted, Cirstea regained the lead at 4-3. She then held serve after two more Sabalenka return errors.

But one final push, in the form of two break points, would be needed for Cirstea to reach her first 1000-level semifinal since 2003 (Toronto). Again, Sabalenka aided her opponent's cause with unforced errors.

One point later, and Cirstea was two wins away from winning it all in Miami.

Cirstea entered March with none of the confidence we saw from her today. In main-draw matches on the season, she was 2-5 before a quarterfinal run at Indian Wells. Not that a former Top 25 player would need to prove that it wasn't a fluke, but she's bettered that result in Miami, with the straight-sets win over Sabalenka her tour de force thus far.

"I feel ecstatic mostly for the work that I've been doing lately," said Sabalenka to Tennis Channel's Prakash Amritraj afterward. "I've worked very hard since October, since I started working with [coach and former Australian Open champion] Thomas Johansson. It's been paying off on the court, off the court."

Specifically, she's found the elusive balance between aggression and consistency—a winning formula at any level of tennis.

"I think I've always had the game," said Cirstea, who hasn't dropped a set in Miami and had just nine unforced errors against Sabalenka. "I was always dangerous. But, now and then, I could be a bit erratic. Against the top players, you are not allowed to do that.

Now, it's Cirstea who is once again playing like a "top player," and whether she faces Petra Kvitova or Ekaterina Alexandrova in Thurday's semis, she'll have a legitimate opportunity for a late-career breakthrough.

"Someone that I don't know (Alexandrova), and someone that I know quite well (Kvitova)," mused Cirstea. "It's going to be interesting. I'll try to come out tomorrow with the same performance."