Raonic overpowers Zverev
FOURTH SEED Alexander Zverev was dumped out of the Australian Open in spectacular fashion by Milos Raonic yesterday, while Serena Williams survived a challenge from world number one Simona Halep.
Men’s top seed Novak Djokovic meanwhile advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-3 victory in three hours over over Russian Daniiil Medevdev.
Zverev, who had been considered a favourite for the title after beating Roger Federer and Djokovic en route to winning the ATP Finals in November, was defeated in the fourth round 6-1, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5).
Though the 21-year-old German broke 16th seed Raonic in the first game of the match, he went on to lose the next eight in a row, failing to hold serve until the second set.
At the changeover at 4-1 down in the second, Zverev bashed his racquet off the ground repeatedly until it was a crumpled mess.
But the release of anger did little to help him counter the Canadian.
Normally a power-server himself, Zverev committed 10 double faults and fired just six aces to Raonic’s 15 and just 21 winners to Raonic’s 45.
Though he recovered enough to save two match points at 4-5 down in the third set to level with Raonic and eventually force a tiebreak, Zverev never got back to his usual form, allowing Raonic to take the match in just two hours.
Zverev’s exit came a day after second seed Angelique Kerber was ousted 6-0, 6-2 by the unseeded American Danielle Collins, and defending champion Roger Federer was defeated by Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Raonic will face Lucas Pouille for a place in the semi-final, after the Frenchman defeated Borna Coric 6-4 (4-7), 6-4, 7-5, 7-6 (7-2) in a closelycontested match to enter the quarter finals for the first time.
Williams was meanwhile pushed to a third set for the first time in the tournament, after a fight-back from Romania’s Halep, who lost all of her service games in the first set.
The French Open champion appeared to read Williams better in the second, improving the accuracy of her serves and becoming more aggressive, breaking the American at 5-4 to claim the second set.
She also had the 23-time grand slam champion on the ropes at 3-2, forcing Williams to save three breakpoints in a game that lasted ten minutes before Williams held serve and levelled.
But Halep couldn’t match the sheer firepower of the American, who pulled out nine aces and 44 winners to two and 24 from Halep respectively. Williams broke again to pull ahead 5-3, and held serve to claim the set and the match 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. She takes on seventh seed Karolina Pliskova in the quarter final, after the Czech trounced twotime grand slam champion Garbine Muguruza 6-3, 6-1.
Earlier, fourth seed Naomi Osaka came from a set down to secure herself a place in the quarter final, defeating Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
She takes on Elina Svitolina in the quarter final after the Ukrainian delivered an uneven victory over Madison Keys 6-2, 1-6, 6-1.
Back in the men’s draw, Djokovic battled to get by Medevdev in a match in which the younger Russian fought to the last point.
But while 15th seed Medvedev took the second set off the six-time champion and embroiled him in some lengthy rallies – at least one of which was more than 40 shots – experience won out in the end.
He plays Kai Nishikori in the quarter final, after the Japanese eighth seed beat Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (8-10), 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4, 7-6 (10-8).