Britain’s Katie Boulter will face former world number one Simona Halep (Match betting – Boulter 7/2, Halep 2/11) in the Birmingham Classic quarter-final following a straight-sets win against Caroline Garcia.
Boulter has enjoyed an excellent tournament as she steps up her preparations for Wimbledon, which starts on June 27, and now faces potentially the biggest match of her career against the Romanian.
The 25-year-old came into her quarter-final on the back of beating American player Alison Riske – a result which saw her defeat a top-40 ranked player for the first time in her career.
Then, against former world number four Garcia, Boulter edged a very tight opening set 7-6 (7-5) thanks to a double fault from Garcia before coasting to a 6-1 triumph in the second set.
Britain’s rising star, who has won six tournaments on the ITF circuit, will be hoping to keep this momentum going when having a crack at former Wimbledon and French Open champion Halep, who is 14/1 to triumph at the All England Club again.
Wimbledon wild-card Boulter, who only returned to action from a leg injury in March, said she was thrilled to win and believes her hard work is paying off.
“I’m absolutely ecstatic right now,” the 25-year-old said. “I’ve worked so hard the past few weeks with my injury.
“It kind of makes it feel worthwhile – and all the tough moments that I went through, and pushing through, really got me through today. I’m really happy to be in the quarter-finals and am looking forward to another good match.”
Boulter’s best results at Wimbledon have seen her get to the second round in both 2018 and 2021, where she was beaten by high-ranked superstars Naomi Osaka (16/1 – Wimbledon 2022 Women’s Outright) and Aryna Sabalenka, respectively.
