By Alberto Amalfi | Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Monica Puig pounded third-seeded Garbine Muguruza, 6-1, 6-1, in 64 minutes to roar into the Rio quarterfinals.
Photo credit: @ComiteOlimpico
Monica Puig turned the Olympic stage into a platform for the most monumental win of her career.
Puig pounded third-seeded Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, 6-1, 6-1, in a 64-minute thrashing to roar into the Rio quarterfinals.
More: Keys Stops Suarez Navarro In Rio
"Here, it's not really my job, it's for my country and nothing can compare to that," Puig said afterward. "It's one of the most special things ever."
The 34th-ranked pride of Puerto Rico, who prepared for the Games adopting a puppy she named Rio and reaching the Florianopolis semifinals, has powered through the draw without surrendering a set.
"It's huge not just for me, but for Puerto Rico," Puig told Bravo Network's Trenni Kusnierek afterward. "I went into the match knowing I wasn't the favorite... Here I come out of the blue. I just believed in myself and believed what I can do. I always seem to play my best when I play from my country."
Puig backed up her impressive 6-3, 6-2 triumph over 14th-seeded Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova playing with conviction and control against the erratic Roland Garros champion.
A listless Muguruza nearly doubled her opponent's unforced error total, 29 to 15, and showed no Plan B as Puig rolled through 10 of the first 12 games.Muguruza served just 51 percent and betrayed her cause clanking seven double faults.
Moving with more urgency and displaying plenty of positive emotion, Puig beat Muguruza to the ball and played deep drives to prevent the Spaniard from taking charge of rallies.
Taking the ball early, Puig often jammed shots right down the middle into Muguruza's hip to tie up the Spaniard. Puig, who stepped inside the baseline to take second-serve returns on the rise, converted six of eight break points.
Since Muguruza scored a 7-5, 6-4 triumph over Serena Williams in the Roland Garros final to capture her first Grand Slam title, she's struggled to find her form and motivation.
Muguruza fell in the Mallorca first round to Kirsten Flipkens, lost to Jana Cepelova in the Wimbledon second round, withdrew from Montreal and failed to survive the Rio round of 16.
Puig, who started the season ranked No. 92, scored her first Top 15 victory since she defeated No. 14 Belinda Bencic in the Syndey semifinals in January.
"I had a difficult year last year and I think I learned a lot from it," Puig said. "I'm still enjoying the ride. I have a long career ahead and I'm enjoying the perks of it.
"I think just staying as focused as possible (was the key). I knew I was playing well and had to stay on my toes. She's a really powerful player and I knew she was gonna try to push me back. And I just had to stay on top of the line and I did that."
The 22-year-old Puig will face Germany's Laura Siegemund for a spot in the final four.
The 33rd-ranked Siegemund stopped Flipkens, 6-4, 6-3, two rounds after the 30-year-old Belgian knocked Venus Williams out in the opening round.
Like Puig, Siegemund has posted break-out results this season, winning her first WTA title on the red clay of Bastad. Siegemund rides an eight-match winning streak into her first meeting with Puig.
Petra Kvitova fired 42 winners conquering Ekaterina Makarova, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a physical two hour, 41-minute match.
The two-time Wimbledon champion will play either four-time gold-medal champion Serena Williams or Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals.
Russia's Daria Kasatkina defeated former French Open finalist Sara Errani, 7-5, 6-2. Kasatkina will face seventh-seeded American Madison Keys for a semifinal spot.
Breaking serve three times in the decisive set, Keys dispatched Carla Suarez Navarro, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, becoming the first player to reach the Rio quarterfinals.
"I'm so excited," Keys told Bravo Network's Trenni Kusnierek afterward. "Growing up it was always something I watched, so being in the quarterfinals means so much to me."
Showing no signs of fatigue after edging Kristina Mladenovic, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), in the longest match of these Olympics, Keys commanded the center of the court and often controlled play with her forehand.