Sofia Kenin excited to face Ash Barty and pro-Australian crowd in semis

Sofia Kenin and Ons Jabeur speak after Kenin defeated Jabeur 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday to advance to the Australian Open semifinals.

Ash Barty is a step closer to ending a four-decade drought for Aussies at the national championship.

Top-ranked Barty saved set points in the 11th game and another in the tiebreaker before seizing the momentum against two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in a 7-6 (6), 6-2 quarterfinal win at the Australian Open on Tuesday.

The so-called Barty Party in 2019 ended in a quarterfinal loss to Kvitova. The start of a new decade is cause for a bigger celebration at Melbourne Park.

Barty next faces Sofia Kenin, who reached the semifinals at a major for the first time with a 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 78-ranked Ons Jabeur.

In a first set that lasted almost 70 minutes, Barty fended off eight of the nine break-point chances she faced before finally getting the upper hand when she won a 22-shot rally, defending for much of it just to stay in the point, at 3-2 down in the tiebreaker.