Azarenka is a huge Peyton Manning fan, but she also shares an agent with Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, who will be the Bronco’s NFC opponent.
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“I feel really happy”, Azarenka said, per Stuart Fraser of the MailOnline.
Indeed the match was packed with attacking play, both men hitting many more winners to errors: Wawrinka made 52 to 31, as both fought to take control of the front of the court.
The Spaniard is yet to drop a set in Melbourne this year but his next assignment will be his toughest yet against Andy Murray, who breezed past Australia’s Bernard Tomic in straight sets. Murray has lost all four finals he’s contested at the Australian Open, including last year’s championship match to Novak Djokovic. He won 22 of his 25 service games, broke Wawrinka’s serve five times and had 82 winners to 52. The two played a very entertaining match but the second seed proved too good for the Australian.
David Ferrer has reached his sixth quarterfinal at the Australian Open, without dropping a set.
“I’m very happy with the way I competed, the way I turned things around after having the momentum against me going into the fifth set”, Raonic told reporters. He then served out the match at love. Earlier, Bopanna, partnering Chinese Taipei’s Yung-Jan Chan, beat Andrea Hlavackova and Lukasz Kubot 4-6, 6-3, 10-6.
Raonic has never beaten the Monfils in their two previous meetings, and said he couldn’t let the explosive clay courter get up to his old tricks if that was to change in Melbourne.
Djokovic lost in the quarterfinals to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2010, then won the tournament in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
Kerber is making her first quarterfinals appearance in Melbourne, while Azarenka is a two-time victor Down Under.
Only one break point came the way of either Wawrinka or Raonic in the first set, but that chance at 30-40 in the ninth game of the match was the only opportunity the underdog needed.
Wawrinka broke for a 2-0 second-set lead when Raonic netted a forehand. “He can give you complete ends of the spectrum within one game”, Raonic said.
Raonic, who earlier spoke of his grief over a high-school shooting in his home country, eliminated the Swiss star 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-3 and will face Gael Monfils in the last eight.
Monfils delighted the Margaret Court Arena crowd with his acrobatic game, including a full-stretch dive that resulted in him needing an injury timeout for treatment on his right hand. However, the day’s biggest upset was caused by 13th seed Milos Raonic of Canada knocking-out fourth seed Stan Wawrinka.
Twice champion and 14th seed Victoria Azarenka continued her ominous advance, beating Czech Barbora Strycova 6-2, 6-4.
The 14th-seeded Azarenka will take on No. 7 Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals.
The Briton, four-times a runner-up at Melbourne Park, was close to exasperation after being broken four times by the talented Australian but dug deep when it mattered to reach the last eight for the seventh year in a row. “Certainly I was trying to just concentrate on the match when I was out there, but, like I said, it’s been a hard, hard few days”.
Keys was back on court Monday in fourth-round match against Zhang Shuai.
“This was my first victory on Rod Laver Arena so that’s a nice plus”.
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Raonic has defeated Stan Wawrinka, the victor of the 2014 Australian Open and last year’s French Open.
