Serena upsets No. 1 seed Halep
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA — As Serena Williams made her way out to the Australian Open’s main court during pre-match introductions, the voice booming over the stadium’s speakers implored spectators to welcome “the world’s No. 1 player from
— Romania, Simona Halep.” Oops. Williams, wearing headphones, quickly pivoted and retreated back into the tunnel she’d just emerged from, making way for her fourthround opponent Monday night. A couple of hours later, when Williams wrapped up her 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 victory over Halep in a contest filled with momentum swings and fantastic play by both, it was clear which woman really is No. 1, regardless of what the current rankings say.
“It was a really intense match, and it was some incredible points,” said Williams, who improved to 9-1 against Halep and now meets 2016 U.S. Open runner-up Karolina Pliskova in the quarterfinals.
The 37-year-old American sat out last year’s Australian Open after giving birth to a daughter months earlier and dealing with health complications. Since returning to the tour, Williams has reached the past two Grand Slam finals, losing both.
Halep offered up the first real test Williams has faced at this year’s Australian Open, where she is bidding for an eighth trophy, pushing her throughout a back-and-forth matchup that was a fascinating mix of power, court coverage and shotmaking.
It wasn’t until Williams saved three break points in a monumental game to hold for 3-all in the third set that she gained control. Williams then broke for a 4-3 lead and finally was on her way.
“In order for me to stay out there, I had to play a little like I knew I could,” said Williams, who is seeded 16th on account of all the time she took away from tennis while becoming a mother.
Pliskova advanced earlier Monday with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over two-time major champion Garbine Muguruza.
The other quarterfinal on that side of the women’s bracket features No. 4 Naomi Osaka against No. 6 Elina Svitolina. Osaka, who beat Williams in last year’s U.S. Open final.
In men’s matches, 2016 Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic knocked off No. 4-seeded Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-1, 7-6 (5), and next takes on No. 28 Lucas Pouille, a 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-5, 7-6 (2) winner over No. 11 Borna Coric. No. 23 Pablo Carreno Busta left the court yelling at the chair umpire after a disagreement in the concluding tiebreaker of his 6-7 (8), 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (8) loss to No. 8-seeded Kei Nishikori in a 5-hour, 5-minute marathon that was the longest match of the tournament.
Nishikori’s quarterfinal foe will be No. 1-seeded and six-time champion Novak Djokovic, who overcame a couple of tumbles to the court and a series of energy-sapping baseline exchanges — one point lasted 42 strokes! — to beat No. 15 Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-3.