Marta Kostyuk reached the quarter-finals of the Guadalajara Open without having played a single point, and is scheduled to meet eighth seed Liudmila Samsonova in the last eight.
The world number 10 moved through after receiving a first-round bye and being awarded a second-round walkover when Taylor Townsend pulled out with an illness. Kostyuk therefore advances to the last eight while yet to take the court in Mexico.
Her next opponent earned her place the hard way, Liudmila Samsonova defeating Kayla Day 7-6 (7-4) 2-6 7-6 (7-5) to reach the quarter-finals. That three-set win sets up a contrast between Samsonova’s recent match play and Kostyuk’s enforced layoff.
Kostyuk arrives in Guadalajara on the back of a strong season. She won her first WTA 1000 title in Madrid in May, and reached the semi-finals of both the French Open and Wimbledon this year. Her most recent defeat came in the US Open, where she lost to sixth seed Linda Noskova in the last 16.
The walkover means Kostyuk advances with extra rest and without match minutes in this event, while Samsonova brings momentum from a tight victory. The quarter-final between the top seed and the eighth seed will determine which player extends a deep run in Guadalajara and moves closer to the tournament title.
Play is scheduled to resume with Kostyuk’s opening match against Samsonova, where the first real test of the top seed’s Guadalajara campaign will begin.
