If over the past years, while he was trained by the renowned former player Stefan Edberg, Federer displayed a game mainly based on a strong service and an aggressive play at the net, following the replacement of Edberg with Ivan Ljubicic there was an obvious change of approach.
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Konta, making her main-draw debut this year after being defeated in qualifying the previous three years, beat Venus Williams in the first round and became the first British player since Jo Durie and Anne Hobbs in 1987 to make it to the fourth round at the Australian Open.
Nadal, after his loss, said he was trying to adapt to changes in how the game is being played now. I think this sort of flatter bounce and faster court is good for his serves, good for his returns.
Two-time champion Victoria Azarenka faces seventh seed Angelique Kerber while unseeded Briton Johanna Konta takes on Chinese qualifier Zhang Shuai in the other quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Federer, a 17-times grand slam champion, had said at the Brisbane International the 23-year-old Tomic, touted as one of the up-and-coming generation of men’s tennis, was “far away” from reaching the top-10. After his 100 unforced errors in a five-set ordeal against Gilles Simon on Sunday, Djokovic jested, “it gives me great joy that I can’t get any worse than that”. “I can beat all the guys on tour”, Federer told reporters. “Why do you do that?’ Do they ever talk about tennis to you in any way?”
Ahead of the Williams-Sharapova showdown, Radwanska, a semi-finalist past year, said she did not mind who she faced in the last-four clash on Thursday.
Ivanovic had just won the first set when the match was stopped, but Keys came back to win in three sets. “I remember hitting it as hard as I could”. What was most troubling for Nadal was, that once again, he fell short against an opponent who basically outhit him from every side of the court even though Nadal looked in control of the match.
The 34-year-old Australian player had announced he would retire after this year’s Australian Open.
Nishikori was humiliated 6-1 6-1 in his last meeting with Djokovic in November and will be hoping to avenge that defeat and revive memories of his stunning upset of the Serbian in the semi-finals of the 2014 US Open. He buckles down and outplays the speedy, talented Nishikori.
Don’t look for Tomas Berdych to be wearing his wedding band on court during his quarterfinal. He claims it affects his feel, and worries that on a humid day it could create friction and cause a blister.
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Radwanska will play the victor of Tuesday’s next match between No. 1 Serena Williams and fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova. That will be followed by defending champion Serena Williams’ match against Russian Margarita Gasparyan. Will Williams continue to pour it on, or can Sharapova finally find a way? “It’s a good one so far, I’ve got past the first week and now all the focus is on the second week”.
