Keys pins Kvitova
Djokovic blazes into fourth round; Serena, Venus, Azarenka advance KEY RESULTS
Melbourne, Jan. 24: Fired-up top seed Novak Djokovic powered into the Australian Open fourth round on Saturday, joining sizzling fellow world number one Serena Williams as Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova was sent packing.
The Serb, whose chances of a fifth Australian crown have vastly improved after Roger Federer’s shock exit on Friday, ground down tenacious Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (10/8), 6-3, 64.
Serena, vying for a sixth Australian title and the first since 2010, was slow to find her groove against 26th-ranked Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, going down 6-4 in the first set.
But she shook off the cobwebs under the blazing sun on Rod Laver Arena to rattle through the next two sets 6-2, 6-0. It keeps alive her quest to add a 19th Grand Slam title, which would take her to clear second on the all-time Open Grand Slam winners list.
Venus rallied from behind to defeat Camila Giorgi of Italy 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-1 to make the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time since Wimbledon 2011.
But there was heartbreak for Kvitova, a semifinalist in 2012, as Lindsay Davenport-coached American teen Madison Keys pulled off a big 6-4, 75 upset.
“My hands are still shaking. Right now I can’t even process this,” said Keys.
Victoria Azarenka, the champion in 2012 and 2013 who is unseeded this year after an injury-marred 2014, downed Czech 25th seed Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-4, 6-4 and set up a clash with Dominika Cibulkova.