Serena Williams cheers for Borna Coric as he makes the semifinals of Madrid Open 2023

Serena Williams showed support for her good friend Borna Coric as he made the semifinals of the 2023 Madrid Open.

Coric obtained his best result at the Masters 1000 event in the Spanish capital by making it to the semifinals. He previously experienced a quarterfinal exit at the tournament in 2017. This is also his best result of the year yet.

The 26-year-old has staged a commendable run, defeating the likes of Hugo Gaston, Hubert Hurkacz, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, and most recently, Daniel Altmaier to reach the final four in Madrid.

Coric entered the tournament on the back of a five-match losing streak and has overall witnessed bleak results in 2023. His well-fought 6-3, 6-3 victory against Germany’s Altmaier in the quarterfinals thus impressed Serena Williams, who congratulated him for making it through to the semifinals.

The American veteran celebrated his victory on social media by sharing a video of her watching his match point.

“Get it. Hey! Triple match point,” she said on her Instagram story.

“Congrats @bornacoric,” she added.

Serena Williams on Instagram

Williams has formed a good relationship with the reigning Cincinnati Masters champion over the years and has publicly shown her support for him.

Coric has also cited Williams as a source of “limitless” inspiration. During the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s retirement, the World No. 20 stated that Serena Williams’ “greatness expands off the court as well.”

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Borna Coric sets up clash with Carlos Alcaraz at the Madrid Open 2023

Borna Coric at the 2023 Madrid Open

Borna Coric’s 2022 Cincinnati Masters run reinstated him as the player to watch out for on the tennis circuit. The Croat, who was trying to re-establish himself after undergoing shoulder surgery in 2021 completed a fairytale run at the Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati. He dismissed in-form players such as Lorenzo Musetti, Rafael Nadal, Roberto Bautista Agut, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Cameron Norrie, and Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the biggest title of his career yet.

Just months after his glory, Coric is now gunning for his third Masters 1000 final after Shanghai and Cincinnati. He is gearing up for his biggest challenge yet in the semifinals of the ongoing Madrid Open.

The World No. 20 is set to face top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz for a spot in the ultimate clash. This will be the duo's first meeting on tour.

“He [Alcaraz] is absolutely an unbelievable player in unbelievable shape in the moment as well. So, he’s the favourite and I’m going to just go out there and I’m going to enjoy himself. It’s going to be a very cool feeling for sure,” Coric said after his quarterfinal win at the Madrid Open.