1. It’s time to talk up Milos Raonic as a contender
Did anyone face a more loaded draw than Milos Raonic? Nick Kyrgios first round, former champion Stan Wawrinka next, then attacking Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert and, on Monday, No.4 seed Alexander Zverev.
In the last day match at Rod Laver Arena, Next Gen leader Zverev was reduced to a smashed mess, much like his racquet, as the rocket-serving Canadian barrelled into the quarters 6-1 6-1 7-6(4).
MORE: Raonic ruthless as Zverev causes a racquet
The No.16 seed has dropped one set – a first-set tiebreak against Wawrinka – and that was despite being the better player for much of that set and winning one more point.
MORE: Five things we learned on Day 7
Raonic next faces Lucas Pouille, No.28 seed and first-time quarterfinalist at Melbourne Park – for a very makeable semifinal, which would equal his best finish here in 2016.
MORE: Pouille punches his ticket to quarters
Meanwhile, the majors misery continues for Zverev; Roland Garros last year remains his only trip to the last eight.
2. Karolina is kryptonite
What is it with some tennis match-ups? Karolina Pliskova, a Slam-less former No.1, is kryptonite for Garbine Muguruza, also a former No.1 but two-time major winner.
On Monday at her favourite Margaret Court Arena, the Czech hammered the Spaniard 6-3 6-1 to extend her head-to-head dominance to 8-2. If anything, the score was flattering to Muguruza, who gathered 29 points in 16 games.
But why?
Both are tall and angular ‘first-strike’ aggressive baseliners and sometimes brittle competitors. Tennis boffins speculate that Pliskova’s flat ball-striking makes it difficult for Muguruza to get under the ball and impart her customary spin and shape.
Or maybe Pliskova nailed it when she said: “I felt confident coming into this match because I beat her so many times. I had tough match the day before [going three sets with Camila Giorgi] so I was feeling confident about this matchup somehow today.”
The No.7 seed, Pliskova is undefeated in 2019, going 9-0 after Monday’s rout. In case you missed it: “The main thing was that I was feeling confident about her today.”
She won’t be feeling the same about her next opponent. Pliskova faces Serena Williams in her third straight AO quarterfinal.
MORE: Serena digs in to see off Halep
3. Naomi now knows how to come back
Naomi Osaka won her third match in Australia from a set down on Monday against Anastasija Sevastova to make her quarterfinal debut at Melbourne Park.
The powerful No.4 seed won 4-6 6-3 6-4 against the 13th seed, who joined US Open champion Osaka in the final four at Flushing Meadows. “We honestly have the toughest matches whenever we play each other,” Osaka said, having overturned the Latvian in Brisbane only a fortnight ago by a similar scoreline: 3-6 6-0 6-4.
MORE: Osaka advances against wily Sevastova
Neither was as dramatic a turnaround as Osaka’s Saturday win over Hsieh Su-Wei from 7-5 3-0 down.
That’s three comeback wins for Osaka in 2019, already one more than all of 2018. “I think the biggest thing for me is the belief,” Osaka considered. “I believe in myself more this year that I have last year.” A Grand Slam title will do that. She is also noticeably fitter.
“I always tried to tell her that there is so much more different types of pressure than just blasting the ball,” said coach Sascha Bajin, formerly at the side of Serena Williams. “She did have already so much power, it was very obvious she had to do more of the other stuff.”
He’s thrilled at his Osaka’s progress. “Seeing how she’s able to solve the problem on court and comes back and wins, it is beautiful to see. [It] shows maturity, and shows that she’s come a long way. She’s getting her emotions under better control. Overall just very proud of how she’s handled this tournament so far.”
4. Trio heading to the Hall
Three former Australian Open champions will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame at Newport, Rhode Island, in July.
The class of 2019 was announced on Monday by Hall of Fame president Stan Smith (for millennials, yes, the man on the iconic Adidas shoe).
Yevgeny Kafelnikov, champion here 20 years ago and finalist in 2000 to Andre Agassi; Mary Pierce, champion in 1995 without dropping a set; and Chinese superstar Li Na, winner in 2014 and finalist in 2013 and 2011 – as the first Asian player to contest a title-round at a major – will be celebrated ahead of Tuesday’s evening matches at Rod Laver Arena.
All were French Open winners as well.
5. Kei Nishikori is a marathon man
The hardest road to the quarterfinals was taken by Kei Nishikori. Late on Monday, the No.8 seed overhauled Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7(10) 4-6 7-6(4) 6-4 7-6(10-8) in five hours and five minutes.
MORE: Nishikori takes the long road
At 8-5 down in the match tiebreak, the 29-year-old was two points from defeat. But after a contested call, he swept five straight points for victory in Margaret Court Arena. Carreno Busta, incensed at the umpire’s decision not to replay a point, didn’t win another, hurling his racquet bag to the court and venting his fury as he left the arena.
It was Nishikori’s second win via the new match tiebreak introduced at this year’s Australian Open.
He beat Ivo Karlovic 10-7 in the second round. Monday’s win was also his second comeback from two sets down, though his opening-round opponent, Kamil Majchrzak, retired while 3-0 down in the decider, rather than a completed set.
Nishikori has logged 13 hours 47 minutes on court. He struck a ridiculous 81 winners on Monday to enter his fourth Melbourne Park quarterfinal, where he’ll face Novak Djokovic.