Konta KO as Maria’s hopes rise

MARIA SHARAPOVA and Angelique Kerber have emerged from the chaos of the Australian Open women’s draw as two of the favourites after Britain’s No 1 Jo Konta joined a host of fallen seeds yesterday. Because of Sharapova’s depressed ranking, the pair will now meet in the third round in a match that — in the absence of Serena Williams — feels more like a semi-final or final. But there will be no Konta, who lost 6-4, 7-5 to world No 123 Croatian-American Bernarda Pera. She was only one of 10 of the top 16 seeds who had tumbled out by late afternoon on the fourth day. Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza was another. One crumb of comfort for Konta was that Pera was a far tougher opponent than her ranking suggested. Yet it is a fact that the last time Konta had any momentum was back at Wimbledon last summer. ‘I don’t feel it’s a catastrophe, she said, ‘but I don’t want to be going home this early.’ Ninth seed Konta had reached the quarter-final and semi-final on her past two visits to Melbourne Park.