"Not over until it's over" - Peyton Stearns channels her inner 'dog' as she comes back from verge of defeat against Lucia Bronzetti in Morocco Open

Peyton Stearns attributed the 'dog' in her as the reason for her remarkable comeback win against Lucia Bronzetti in the quarterfinals of the Morocco Open. The American was 0-5 and a match point down but turned things around to reach the semifinals.

Stearns has been having a poor season so far, getting eliminated in the early stages of almost every tournament she has played. However, she seems to have finally turned things around.

The American is currently competing at the Moroccan Open where she kicked off her campaign with a comeback win against Aleksandra Krunic in the opening round 5-7, 6-2, 6-1. She then eliminated sixth seed Xang Wiyu in the second round 6-3, 6-1.

Stearns faced fourth seed Bronzetti next and clinched the first set 6-4. However, the Italian fought back to win to win the second set and even the score. Bronzetti came all guns blazing in the deciding set as she went 5-0 and 40-30 up.

But in an amazing turn of events, the 22-year-old came back from this position. She saved a couple of match points and won seven consecutive games along the way to win the set 7-5. The match lasted two hours and 45 minutes.

Peyton Stearns took to X after the match where she reacted to her performance and joked how she channeled the 'inner dog' in her. In one tweet, she reacted to the scoreline with the words:

"woof woof"

In another tweet, she posted a photo of dogs inside a person's skeleton and said:

"not over until it's over"

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Peyton Stearns played college tennis for the Texas Longhorns

Peyton Stearns

Before turning pro, Peyton Stearns played college tennis for the Texas Longhorns (University of Texas at Austin) for two seasons. She became the first player representing the college to win the NCAA Division I Women's Singles National Championship in 2022.

The American cited compatriot Danielle Collins as her inspiration for taking up college before entering the professional scene.

Though Stearns is yet to win a WTA title, she has captured five ITF singles titles and two doubles titles. She reached the final of the WTA 250 tournament Copa Colsanitas last year but lost to Tatjana Maria in three sets.

Peyton Stearns will face Viktoriya Tomova in the semifinals of the Morocco Open. The two women met last year at the US Open in the first round, where Stearns got the better of Tomova in straight sets.