Judging by the celebrity cast who gathered on the green sands of Charleston earlier this week, there is not just one surprise to report in the semifinals of the WTA Tour 500 tournament. First there is the Spaniard Paula Badosa, who was able to assert herself on Friday against the number one of the tournament and the WTA world rankings, Ashleigh Barty, with 6: 4 and 6.3.

Badosa, who had previously beaten Belinda Bencic, fended off twelve of Barty's 14 break chances and met Veronika Kudermetova in the semifinals, who in turn won against Sloane Stephens. Kudermetova has won both previous meetings with Badosa.

In the second match of the semifinals, Danka Kovinic and Ons Jabeur meet. Jabeur used her whole routine against Cori Gauff, winning 6: 3 and 6: 3. Kovinic, on the other hand, had to go over three sets against Yulia Putintseva.

Here the single tableau in Charleston