Anastasia Potapova Breaks Down in Tears After Setting Up Historic Feat as Lucky Loser in Madrid
Tennis thrives on Cinderella stories, and Anastasia Potapova authored one for the ages at the Madrid Open. On April 21, defeat to Sinja Kraus on Court 7 seemed to end her journey before it began at the Qualifiers.
April 29, 2026, Madrid, Bretagne, SPAIN: Anastasia Potapova of Austria during the Mutua Madrid Open 2026, ATP, Tennis Herren Masters 1000 and WTA, Tennis Damen 1000 on 29 April 2026 at La Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain - Photo: . Madrid SPAIN - ZUMAl193 20260429_zsp_l193_086 Copyright: xLaurentxLairysx ©IMAGO/ZUMA Press Wire Tennis thrives on Cinderella stories, and Anastasia Potapova authored one for the ages at the Madrid Open . On April 21, defeat to Sinja Kraus on Court 7 seemed to end her journey before it began at the Qualifiers.
Yet fate flipped the script. By April 29, under the Sun of Manolo Santana Stadium, she collapsed in tears, overwhelmed after storming into a WTA 1000 semifinal. “No, I wouldn’t, for any money and anything,” said Anastasia Potapova when asked if she believed a semifinal run was possible after her qualifying loss.
The statement captured just how improbable her journey at the Madrid Open had seemed days earlier. It was disbelief turning into reality. Her emotional outburst came after she etched her name into history.
Potapova became the first lucky loser to reach a WTA 1000 or Tier I semifinal since the Tier format began in 1990. That milestone alone underlined the magnitude of her run. She achieved it with a gripping 6-1, 6-7(4), 6-3 victory over Karolina Pliskova in one hour and 54 minutes on Wednesday.
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