Tennis News

After meeting five times over the past three years, all of which in important matches, Andy Murray and Grigor Dimitrov will once again cross paths on the tour, this time for a spot in the quarter-final round of the Australian Open. It will mark the seventh time that they meet, with Murray leading the head to head series 4-2, including a win in their most recent encounter at last year’s Paris Masters event.

Watch the match here: Murray v Dimitrov Live

Few top seeds looked as good as Andy Murray did in his third round match against Joao Sousa. The British No. 1 stormed through the encounter with minimal effort. He dropped just two games in the first two sets, then had a slight dip in the final set before finishing the Portuguese No. 1 6-1, 6-1, 7-5. Murray hit 39 winners, 9 aces and won 83% of his first service points to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open for the seventh consecutive year.

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Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov came up against Marcos Baghdatis, a former runner-up at the event. He had to withstand 15 aces from the Cypriot, as well as 52 winners to close out the match in five sets 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3. He won 74% of his first service points and converted four break points to finish the match in 2 hours and 59 minutes and set up the enthralling match-up with Murray.

“I’m always excited to play against him. You know, I had a tough loss against him in Paris. So, you know, it’s a good matchup. I always like that kind of challenge. I think physically and mentally I’m ready to play that match and really give 100% from myself. I’m going out there to win the match. So there’s nothing else I can say about it.”

This marks the seventh time that Murray and Dimitrov will cross paths on the professional tour, and could make for an entertaining match-up if both come in form. Murray has looked great since the start of the season and is clearly motivated to get back to his pre-surgery form. Dimitrov, on the other hand, is slightly shakier and has had a turbulent path to this stage of the tournament. Unless he pulls himself together, his time in Melbourne will soon come to an end.

Prediction: Andy Murray in Four Sets

After nearly suffering an upset in the second round of the tournament, Rafael Nadal rebounded with a straightforward thrashing of his Israeli opposition Sela to advance to the final 16 in Melbourne. Next up for the Spaniard is a meeting against Kevin Anderson, whom he faced once previously in Toronto back in 2010. The Nadal vs Anderson head-to-head series stands at 1-0.

Watch the match here: Nadal v Anderson Live

All eyes were on the world No. 3 as he stepped out on court for his night match. Given his surprisingly average performance several days prior, many wondered if Dudi Sela could produce similar results. Those thoughts were quickly put to rest, as Nadal stormed through the first two sets, and lost just one game in the process. The final set was far more competitive, but the end result remained the same. Nadal fired 43 winners, 4 aces and won 76% of his first service points to close out the match 6-1, 6-0, 7-5 in 2 hours and 4 minutes.

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“Seriously I feel that I was in terms of legs I wake up in the morning better than what I thought. In terms of, you know, I was still a little bit dizzy yesterday. I think I lost lot of fluids the other night. But in general I was not very, very bad. Happy the way I was physically on court tonight. Obviously happy the way I played the first two sets.

“Then the third play with more mistakes, but all is part of the process that I am doing. It’s normal to play every day with a little bit more ups and downs when you are out for a while.”

The Spaniard will next play Kevin Anderson, who also needed straight sets to dispatch France’s Richard Gasquet 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(6) to reach the fourth round of the tournament. The South African struck 18 aces, 52 winners and won 84% of his first service points. If he can harness some of that aggression against Nadal, it could make for a very intriguing contest.

This is just the second time that Nadal and Anderson meet on the professional tour, with Nadal leading the head-to-head series 1-0. This will undoubtedly be the Spaniard’s toughest test this week in Melbourne and could make for another rollercoaster contest like the only played with Tim Smyzeck. While Nadal should get out of this match and into the quarter-finals, he may not have the easiest paths to that stage of the tournament.

Prediction: Rafael Nadal in Four Sets

After an easier match this time around, Maria Sharapova finds herself in the fourth round of the Australian Open, where she will now meet Shuai Peng for the fifth time on the professional tour. Sharapova leads the head-to-head series 4-1, and has won the last three encounters dating back to 2011.

Watch the match here: Sharapova v Peng Live

After being forced to save match points in her second round match, Maria Sharapova rebounded in sublime fashion on Friday evening, as she defeated rising prospect Zarina Diyas to reach the fourth round of the tournament. She hit 22 winners, converted 6 break points and won 78% of her first service points to finish the match 6-1, 6-1, in 61 minutes.

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“I think I rebounded really well. I had a good hit yesterday. Just kind of thought a little bit about what I wanted to try to achieve tonight no matter who I played. Of course, I focused a little bit on myself more than anything else. Just tried to be a bit more aggressive, concentrate.

“I thought I did a good job of focusing well. Yeah, she can be a tough, tough player to play against if you give her the time to change down the line like she likes to do, step down and hit flat, low. So she has that capability, and if you give her the time, she’ll do it.”

Chinese No. 1 Shuai Peng looked sharp in her straight sets victory over Yaroslava Shvedova. She defeated her 7-6(9), 6-3 to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open. Peng struck 25 winners, 52% of her first service points and converted 5 break points to close out the match in 2 hours and 3 minutes.

Sharapova has won the last three consecutive meetings against Peng and only lost to her in a 2009 meeting in Beijing. However, the two are actually tied 1-1 in hard court matches, but that is unlikely to affect Sharapova – the Russian should have little difficulty reaching the quarter-final round in Melbourne.

Prediction: Maria Sharapova in Straight Sets

Canadian star Eugenie Bouchard continues to impress at the 2015 Australian Open, as she got past a stiff challenger in Caroline Garcia with relative ease to cruise into the fourth round of the tournament. She will next come up against Irina-Camelia Begu, whom she has never met previously on the professional tour.

Watch the match here: Bouchard v Begu Live

Although not playing the cleanest of matches, Bouchard was certainly dominant. She defeated her French adversary Caroline Garcia 7-5, 6-0 in less than 75 minutes to advance in the tournament. Bouchard hit 14 winners, converted 2 break points and won 59% of her first service points to close out the match.

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“Yeah, I wasn’t playing great tennis in the first. I feel like she was putting some pressure on me and I really didn’t feel like I got a rhythm. But I’m happy that I just kept going. Even if it wasn’t going so well, I was able to turn it around.

“I loosened up a bit and started going for my shots and playing my game, which is what I need to do more. Yeah, probably taking a bit of time away from her stepping in. She was playing that way as well. It ended up being first-strike tennis and I did that better in the second.”

The Canadian will next come up against Begu, who defeated Germany’s Carina Witthoeft in straight sets 6-4, 6-4 to reach the fourth round of the tournament. She struck 14 winners, 5 aces, and won 63% of his first service points to clouse out the match in 1 hour and 26 minutes.

Bouchard and Irina-Camelia Begu have never met previously on the tour, which could add to the potential intrigue in the match. However, given Bouchard’s rejuvenated game so far this week, there is little doubt she will advance to the final eight in Melbourne.

Prediction: Eugenie Bouchard in Straight Sets

In what could prove to be a enthralling match-up, Simona Halep will continue her quest to lift her maiden Grand Slam title with a fourth round contest against a player who has never lost to her in professional competition, Yanina Wickmayer. This will be the fourth time that the two cross paths on the tour, with Wickmayer leading the head-to-head series 3-0.

Watch the match here: Halep v Wickmayer Live

The Romanian had another straightforward match this week in Melbourne, this time against Mattek-Sands. She broke four times to win the match 6-4, 7-5 in exactly 91 minutes of court time. She struck 29 winners, 3 aces and won 79% of her first service points to advance to the final 16 unscathed. She had slight difficulty serving out the match but managed to do so on the second attempt. She will now go up against a stiffer challenge – one she is yet to overcome in her career.

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“She beat me every time when I played her, but next round will be a new day. I have my chance to win it. But I expect a very tough match. She’s very tall and she’s very strong. So I have to wait and to prepare myself to be ready before the match.”

While it may technically be considered an upset due to the difference in the rankings, but few expected Sara Errani to actually defeat Yanina Wickmayer in their third round match-up on Friday. While the Italian won the opening set, her Belgian adversary rallied back to win the match 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. She hit a grand total of 54 winners, including 2 aces and won 61% of her first service points to close out the match in 2 hours and 14 minutes.

This marks the fourth time that Halep and Wickmayer cross paths on the tour and may be their most intriguing encounter yet. While Wickmayer maintains a stranglehold over the series, she has not faced Halep since 2012, and the Romanian is a far different competitor now. She may be en route to her first ever loss to Halep.

Prediction: Simona Halep in Three Sets

Former Australian No. 1 Bernard Tomic has been out to prove that the younger batch of talent has not passed him by, and he achieved just that by arriving in the fourth round of the tournament. The only other Aussie remaining in the men’s draw is Nick Kyrgios, which bodes well for Tomic. However, he will next come up against Tomas Berdych, whom he has never beaten on the professional tour. Berdych’s wins both took place at the Wimbledon Championships in consecutive years, leaving him with a 2-0 record in the head-to-head series.

Watch the match here: Berdych v Tomic Live

Up against the resurgent Viktor Troicki, Tomas Berdych needed no more than the necessary straight sets to find his way into the fourth round. The Czech No. 1 hit 55 winners, 20 aces and won 89% of his first service points to defeat the Serb 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 and set up his meeting with the Aussie.

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In a battle between two Aussies, Bernard Tomic proved to be the superior competitor against his countryman Sam Groth and found his way into the fourth round of the Australian Open. He won the match 6-4, 7-6(8), 6-3 in 1 hour and 43 minutes. Tomic hit 26 winners, 9 aces and won 83% of his first service points to set up the first professional hard court meeting against Berdych.

It should be noted that the Australian did beat Berdych on hard courts in Kooyong (exhibition) several years ago, but even he is not confident that will be the reason for his success.

“Yeah’s that was like Kooyong,” Tomic shrugged. “I don’t know. That was like Kooyong. I can’t even remember what happened. I do take confidence, but last few times were like a very tough match. I learnt a lot, so it’s an opportunity I have to play Tomas. We played twice before. He’s a very, very good player. He’s been at the top for many years. I have to come to this match to play my tennis, and then I have a chance.”

This is set to be the third time that Berdych and Tomic cross paths on the tour, yet the first time on hard courts professionally. Berydch leads the series 2-0 but both those wins took place on grass at Wimbledon. Both those encounters were close affairs and it is quite possible that the Czech star could be pushed to deep waters against the confident Tomic.

Prediction: Tomas Berdych in Four Sets