Beatriz Haddad Maia upset one of the tournament favourites Ons Jabeur on Wednesday to advance to the semi-final at the French Open.
The 14th seed beat the seventh seed 3-6, 7-6, 6-1 to become the first Brazilian to reach the last four at Roland Garros since Maria Bueno in 1968.
After claiming the first set, Jabeur began to falter in the latter stages of the second set. She saved a set point during an arduous game to take it into the tiebreak.
Haddad Maia took the ascendance and racked up a 6-3 lead.
Jabeur fought off two of them but Haddad Maia secure the shootout to level match with a forehand winner after one hour and 47 minutes of play.
Haddad Maia's momentum continued into the decider. The 27-year-old sped into a 3-0 lead but faltered when serving for 4-0.
But Jabeur could not exploit the reprieve. She too was fraying. Instead of holding for 2-3 to heap pressure on Haddad Maia, she lost her serve.
Edge
At 4-1 up, Haddad Maia needed to save four separate break points during a nerve-shredding game lasting nearly 11 and a half minutes.
Serving to stay in the tie, a visibly deflated Jabeur pumped a weak forehand into the net to give Haddad Maia three match points.
One was saved with a powerful service, but Jabeur whacked a forehand long to give the Brazilian the spoils after two hours and 29 minutes.
"Me and my team work hard all year long to do this kind of work," Haddad Maia told the on-court interviewer Alex Corretja.
"I've known Ons since juniors. She's a good player. I had to be patient and keep doing my shots. I am really proud of me and my team."
Haddad Maia will take on the top seed and defending chamlpion Iga Swiatek or the sixth seed Coco Gauff for a place in Saturday's final.
