By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Saturday, January 20, 2024
Armed with an abbreviated service movement, Iga Swiatek suffered disarming defeat in MelbouNorne.
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In her maiden main third-round look, 19-year-old Czech Linda Noskova shocked Swiatek 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in an Australian Open stunner.
The Czech teen snapped Swiatek’s 18-match successful streak and shattered the highest seed’s 2024 AO dream.
A daring Noskova cracked 35 winners, together with 10 aces, stamping the largest win of her younger profession to enhance to 7-1 on the season.
Awash in emotion afterward, Noskova sat in her court-side seat, pressed her face in her towel and shed tears of pleasure.
“I’m speechless, I knew it was going to be an incredible match with the world No. 1 and such a participant, however I didn’t actually suppose it might find yourself like this,” mentioned Noskova, who suffered a crushing 6-1, 6-4 loss to Swiatek of their lone prior assembly in Warsaw final season. ““The match was clearly actually, actually powerful…
“I believe from the primary time that I noticed I used to be going to play her I used to be simply enthusiastic about this match for 2 days in a row. I used to be simply making an attempt to organize myself mentally, I’m simply actually glad to get by this spherical.”
The highest-seeded Swiatek, who rallied from 1-4 down within the remaining set to defeat 2022 AO finalist Danielle Collins in a spirited second-round comeback, attributed the upset to 2 most important causes.
Swiatek mentioned she lacked her typical sharp intuition studying the sport and credited Noskova for enjoying proactive tennis on pivotal factors.
“I felt like I had every part beneath management till she broke me within the second set,” Swiatek mentioned. “However, yeah, effectively, I had couple of possibilities to interrupt her in second set and I did not use them. In order that’s a disgrace.
“However when she broke me, she was form of proactive. I needed to try this as effectively later within the subsequent video games. Generally, yeah, I used to be speeding it. I simply wasn’t enjoying form of with my instinct and naturally. I suppose I am going to need to work on stuff to really feel extra comfy subsequent 12 months.”
After which there have been three.
Swiatek’s beautiful ouster means solely three High 10 seeds reached the spherical of 16 within the girls’s subject.
No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka carries a dropping file towards her fourth-round opponent Amanda Anisimova.
US Open champion and No. 4-seeded Coco Gauff goals to increase her Slam successful streak to 11 matches when she faces the lone Pole nonetheless standing, 69th-ranked Magdalena Frech, within the fourth spherical.
No. 9-seeded two-time defending AO doubles champion Barbora Krejcikova will attempt to halt the impressed run of 16-year-old sensation Mirra Andreeva within the fourth spherical. Devoted followers will recall Andreeva upset former French Open singles and doubles champion Krejcikova within the Wimbledon second spherical final summer season.
The 2022 AO semifinalist suffered her earliest Melbourne exit since a second-round loss in her 2019 debut.
Requested why she’s struggled a bit at Melbourne Park, the 2022 US Open champion mentioned “Effectively, the floor is faster. That is all I might say.”
Modifying her serve movement from a full conventional backswing to an abbreviated takeback, Swiatek battled, however dropped serve within the seventh sport of the decider. Noskova received eight of her final 11 service factors to shut in two hours, 20 minutes and arrange a fourth-round vs. Nineteenth-seeded Elina Svitolina, who knocked Swiatek out of Wimbledon final summer season.
The winner of the Noskova vs. Svitolina match will play both two-time former AO champion Victoria Azareka or Ukrainian qualifer Dayana Yastremska for a semifinal spot.
Picture credit score: Andy Cheung/Getty
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