Every tennis player wants to start the New Year off on the right foot and that usually means doing well at the first grand slam of the year – the Australian Open.
This was especially important for tennis greats Roger Federer and Serena Williams who are both 37 years old and nearing the end of their careers.
Federer had the opportunity of winning 3 consecutive Australian Opens but those hopes faded when he was sent packing by the 14th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. W
With Federer eliminated, all eyes were on Serena Williams who had a tough challenge before her as she took on the number 1 seed Simona Halep. Williams had a rather easy journey in her opening 3 matches and ended up dropping only 9 games.
Williams started in emphatic fashion and quickly took the first set 6-1. However, Halep bounced back and showed why she came in as the number one seed and evened things out by winning the second set 4-6. The fight back from Halep was good for Serena as fans at the Australian Open got to witness a competitive match and also see that Williams is still at the top of her game.
While Halep did put up a fight in the third set, Williams made it count on the crucial points and ended up winning the third set and the match 6-4. The tough match was just what she needed as she prepares to play in another quarter-final at the Australian Open.
Australian Open TV
In a statement, Williams said
It was a really intense match, and it was some incredible points. I love playing tennis and I love to play here and I love to be back out here. I’m such a fighter. I just never give up. It’s definitely something that’s innate. I just work so hard for every point.
Williams will now face Karolina Pliskova who made the quarter finals after putting up a dominant display against Garbine Muguruza, the former world number 1. Pliskova breezed through her match winning 6-3, 6-1 which lasted for just an hour.
Pliskova has been in good form as she entered the Australian Open after winning the Brisbane International earlier this month. She knows that she will have a tougher challenge on her hands when she takes on Williams who is ranked as the 16th seed.
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