Williams defeated Azarenka in the final of the US Open in 2012 and 2013. “I just felt like I was sticking it out, it felt like we were trading serves,” Osaka said of the semi-final tussle. Dropping just nine games along the way with her serve and ground-strokes perfectly ticking for her, Maria Sharapova looks to be the clear favourite – at least on paper. Federer 4-6, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6. [82] In the battle of the Serbs and former world no. [73] 16th seed Kei Nishikori cruised pass Evgeny Donskoy after a sluggish start winning in straights. Dominic Thiem made a significant breakthrough at the Australian Open on Wednesday night, upsetting World No. Osaka, 22, will play either Serena Williams or Victoria Azarenka in Saturday’s final. [120] In the second quarterfinals, it featured an all-Russian affair with a repeat of last year's quarterfinal between Maria Sharapova and Ekaterina Makarova, with Sharapova once again coming through with relative ease with a win. Murray took a two sets to one lead and served for the match at 6–5 in the fourth but Federer broke back and won the tie-break to take it to a fifth. ! Federer 4-6, 7-6. 11:15PM: Andy nets the service return, and Roger wins the tiebreak 7-2. Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. 7:39PM: Murray won the toss and picked his half, Federer to serve first. I think fans expect too much from him. [135], In the Women's final, due to her controversial medical time-out in her semifinal match, defending champion Victoria Azarenka's reception onto the Rod Laver Arena was much more subdued than that of her opponent Li Na. [88] It was followed by another upset when 21st Andreas Seppi eliminating 12th seed Marin Čilić. [34][35] 20th seed Yanina Wickmayer ended the hopes of Australian Jarmila Gajdošová with a win. Mother superior: Serena, Azarenka eye US Open final. Her ability to manoeuvre Sharapova around, and making constant invasions to the net would be the key for Li Na to take complete control over the match. The 2013 Australian Open described in detail, in the form of day-by-day summaries. In post-match interviews Djokovic stated he tried to be more aggressive in the third and fourth sets, coming to the net more often. The Spaniard leads head-to-head 3-2, although she trails 1-0 at grand slams, following Halep’s convincing win on the red dirt of Roland Garros in the 2018 French Open semi-final. 5th set? 1 and 2-time defending champion Novak Djokovic scraped through in 4 sets against 5th seed Tomáš Berdych. [118] In the night match, world no. [40] He was joined in the third round by 5th seeded Czech Tomáš Berdych, who defeated Guillaume Rufin. [12] The only Australian to win in the day was 9th seed Samantha Stosur, ending her six-match losing streak in Australia to Chang Kai-chen. [107], In the Men's Singles, It was a match between Frenchman Jérémy Chardy and Italian Andreas Seppi, who are both trying to reach the quarterfinals of a slam for the first time. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. [101] 5th seed Tomáš Berdych continues his good run and hasn't drop a set in the tournament with a win over Kevin Anderson[102] The final match of the day was a marathon battle of wills between world no. [112], In the Women's Singles, former world no. In winning the 2013 title, Djokovic became the first man in the Open Era to win the Australian Open three consecutive times, and the third man after Roger Federer and Andre Agassi to win the title four times overall.