It’s a déjà vu moment for Garbine Muguruza…
The 21-year-old Venezuelan-Spanish professional tennis player proved that last year’s impressive performance at the French Open was no fluke, repeating her run to the quarterfinals on Monday.
Muguruza advanced with a 6-3 6-4 win over 28th-seeded Flavia Pennetta of Italy and her claycourt skills suggested she has what it takes to become the first Spanish woman to triumph at Roland Garros since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1998.
“The other day we were talking in the locker room because she was there. She was giving me some advice. You have to listen to a champion like Arantxa,” Muguruza told a news conference.
“She was explaining to me when she was my age… you have to control your life outside the tennis, also, it’s very important.
“She was telling me about that. Because at the end, in the court is where you know what to do, but the problem is outside. Just like typical advice from like a mother.”
Muguruza broke decisively in the seventh game of the first set and rallied from 3-0 down in the second, the 21st seed’s powerful ground strokes eventually becoming too hot to handle for Pennetta.
Despite a low first-serve percentage, she wrapped up the contest on her first match point when Pennetta coughed up an unforced error with a backhand.
The Spaniard will next face 13th-seeded Czech Lucie Safarova, who upset defending champion and second seed Maria Sharapova.