| Location: Melbourne Park Dates: 16-29 January |
| Scope: BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra ‘Tennis Breakfast’ live commentary from Melbourne from 07:00 GMT, selected live text commentaries and match reports on the BBC Sport website and app |
Top seed Iga Sviatek crashed out of the Australian Open after losing to Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the fourth round.
Rybakina, seeded 22nd, has struggled to replicate the performances that saw her win at the All England Club in July.
But against Sviatek, the Kazakh showed again how he thrives on the big stage with confidence and energy in a 6-4 6-4 win at Melbourne Park.
Half an hour later, Coco Gough lost 7-5 6-3 Jelena Ostapenko.
American seventh seed Gough, 18, was among the favorites for the title but was beaten by the Latvian 17th seed.
Rybakina, 23, will play former French Open champion Ostapenko in the quarter-finals instead of the match between Sviatek and Gauff.
“I’m nervous every time I’m on court but I try to stay calm. It’s a big win and I’m happy to be in another round,” Rybakina said.
The third seed Jessica Pegula And two-time Melbourne champion Victoria Azarenka Play after Sunday.
Sviatek ‘wanted it too much’
Poland’s Swiatek rose to the top of the world rankings last year following the retirement of Australia’s Ashley Barty, winning the French Open and US Open titles as she dominated the WTA Tour.
She reached the Melbourne semi-finals last year and returns after a remarkable 2022, aiming to become the first woman since Serena Williams in 2015 to hold three of the four major titles.
“I felt like I took a step back in terms of how I approach these tournaments and maybe I want it a little bit harder,” he said.
“So I try to chill a little more.”
Rybakina’s success is more rare. Between the most prestigious title in tennis and the start of this year’s Australian Open, he has won just 14 of his 24 matches and has spoken about the lack of recognition he feels he is given.
She struggled with tough draws, with her world ranking lower than expected No points are earned For her Wimbledon win.
But they made another impressive statement at Melbourne Park, reaching the last eight for the first time with an emphatic win over Sviatek.
The pair traded breaks early in the opening set, before a double fault from Sviatek at 3-3 gave Rybakina another chance, who took it with a big cross-court backhand winner.
A confident hold at love sealed a one-set advantage, but Switek improved early in the second set and raced to a 3-0 lead.
Rybakina quickly fought back and leveled at 3-3 as Sviatek struggled to counter her heavy serves.
He dropped just six points on his first serve of the match and held to love to secure victory after breaking to 5-4.
Rybakina says she is no longer “bothered” about not scoring ranking points at Wimbledon but improving her world standing will be a source of motivation in Melbourne.
“Of course it’s motivation, but like I said before, I want to win every tournament I come to and no points, no points,” he said.
“I love to compete wherever I play. I’d say I don’t really look at these things at the moment.”
Ostapenko ‘has no doubt’ she can win another major
Ostapenko became the teenage champion at the French Open nearly six years ago but many wrote her off as a one-hit wonder due to her lack of deep runs.
However, against Gauff she displayed the power-hitting and aggression that led her to the Roland Garros title in 2017.
Ostapenko hit 30 winners as she broke Gough’s serve three times and saved seven of eight break opportunities for the American.
Ostapenko has reached a major quarter-final for the first time since Wimbledon in 2018, but the 25-year-old says she “honestly never really doubted” she could win another one.
“My life has changed a lot, so I need a few years to get used to what really happened because I was really young,” said Ostapenko, who had never gone beyond the third round at Melbourne Park before.
“I always knew my game and believed that if I played well, I could beat almost anyone.
“I’ve been trying to work more on my consistency, especially in the preseason, just to step on the court and play my game.”
Gough had not dropped a set in her previous three matches, including a second-round win over British number one Emma Raducanu.
The teenage prodigy, who lost to Sviatek in last year’s French Open final, became emotional at his news conference as his wait to land a major continues.
“I think every loss is a little bit under my control because I think I’m a better player, but today she played better,” Gough said.
“There were moments in the match where I was frustrated because I can usually solve the problem, but I feel like I don’t have a lot of answers to what she’s doing.
“There are some things I can improve on, but overall I think she deserves to win.”
