Serena up against old foe Halep in quarter-finals

Serena Williams will lead the charge of American women in the last-eight of the Australian Open and continue her bid for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title when she meets a familiar foe in second seed Simona Halep on Tuesday.

Williams, 39, is among three Americans who have made it to the quarter-finals this year and Wednesday’s clash between Jennifer Brady and Jessica Pegula has ensured at least one from the country will be in the last four.

Williams leads 9-2 in the head-to-head but lost the most recent meeting when she was beaten by Halep in the 2019 Wimbledon final—one of her four defeats in Grand Slam finals since returning to the circuit in 2018 after becoming a mother.

Japan’s Naomi Osaka, who moved to the United States as a three-year-old and lives and trains there, was another player who defeated Williams in the 2018 US Open to win the first of her three majors and could be next up for the American.

Osaka will kick off Tuesday’s proceedings against 35-year-old Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan, a first time major quarter-finalist. Also in action will be eight-time Australian Open champion and topranked Novak Djokovic, who will have concerns over an abdominal injury when he plays sixthseeded German Alexander Zverev, the finalist at the 2020 US Open.