Jovic drops just five games against Bucsa
Iva Jovic has only one WTA title on her record. She won it in Guadalajara last year. Now she is one win away from keeping it.
The 18-year-old American, the No 2 seed, beat Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 6-4, 6-1 in Friday night’s semi-final in Mexico. The scoreline flatters Bucsa. She earned 12 break points in the match and converted only one. Jovic, by contrast, took four of her eight chances.
That edge on the big points told the story. The Los Angeles native held firm when her serve was under pressure, then pulled away in the second set.
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Stearns needed six set points
Across the draw, Peyton Stearns had a far tougher ride. The 24-year-old American beat Russian eighth seed Liudmila Samsonova 7-6 (7), 6-2 in the other semi-final.
The opening set went on and on. Stearns needed six set points to close it out. Two came on Samsonova’s serve at 5-6, then four more in the tie-break. Once she had that set in the bag, she broke straight away in the second to move 2-1 ahead and never looked back.
Stearns is chasing a third career title. Her first two came in Rabat in May 2024 and in Austin in February 2026. Guadalajara would be her first trophy away from the events where she has already done the business.
Badosa cruises into Sao Paulo semi-finals
At the same time, the SP Open in Sao Paulo served up its quarter-finals. Second seed Paula Badosa ended American Mary Stoiana’s run with a 6-4, 6-2 win.
The serving numbers told the tale. The Spaniard won 78% of points behind her first serve. Stoiana, 23 and a Texas A&M alum, managed just 36%. Badosa will now face Argentina’s Nadia Podoroska, who knocked out Dutchwoman Suzan Lamens 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-3.
The other semi-final will pit fourth seed Anna Blinkova against Spain’s Kaitlin Quevedo, the No 7 seed. Quevedo beat Serbia’s Teodora Kostovic 6-3, 6-4. Blinkova saw off Alina Charaeva 6-4, 7-5.
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