On the 10-year anniversary of Li Na’s Australian Open singles title, how appropriate it is that one of China’s brightest-ever prospects moved into the women’s semifinals on Day 11.
Twenty-one-year-old Zheng Qinwen hit back from a set down to beat Anna Kalinskaya 6-7(4) 6-3 6-1 to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal a decade after her idol’s Melbourne title in 2014.
Zheng, whose improved serving was the catalyst behind her mid-match turnaround, is the youngest Chinese player in the Open era to reach a Grand Slam semifinal, and was told on court afterwards that next week she will make her debut in the world’s top 10.
“Thanks for letting me know that – nobody tells me anything!” she said to on-court interviewer Jelena Dokic.
“That’s good news for me. I said last year when I was at the Australian Open ‘I want to be top 10’, and one year later I’m here.”
Incredibly, she will take on another player making her Grand Slam semifinal debut on Thursday when she steps inside Rod Laver Arena with Ukrainian qualifier Dayana Yastremska.
The world No.93 eased past Czech teenager Linda Noskova 6-3 6-4 to win her eighth successive match at Melbourne Park.
Yastremska, whose mother Maryna has been along for the ride throughout her January winning streak, is only the third Ukrainian into a Grand Slam semifinal in the Open era after Elina Svitolina and Andrei Medvedev, and the first qualifier to reach the AO last four since 1978.
Daniil Medvedev is fast becoming the marathon man of AO 2024 after another five-set victory, this time over Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(4) 2-6 6-3 5-7 6-4.
His second five-set victory of the tournament put the world No.3 into his third Australian Open semifinal in the past four years.
Earlier in the draw, Medvedev came back from two sets down to beat Emil Ruusuvuori in a match that finished after 3:30am.
“Just want to sleep now,” wrote the 27-year-old on the camera lens after moving into the last four at a major for the eighth time in his career, later joking that he hoped Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner would "go 7 hours 30, tiebreak 30-28 in the fifth" in the other semifinal on Friday.
Medvedev may well have been expecting to face world No.2 Carlos Alcaraz on Friday, but instead it will be his old rival Alexander Zverev who he takes on for a place in the final.
After Alcaraz stole the third-set tiebreak, sixth seed Zverev did well to come through 6-1 6-3 6-7(2) 6-4 early on Thursday morning to improve his head-to-head record against the Spaniard to 5-3 in his favour.
There was incredible news in the men’s doubles draw when 43-year-old Indian Rohan Bopanna guaranteed himself the world No.1 doubles ranking for the first time in his career.
The Indian teamed up with Aussie partner Matt Ebden to win their quarterfinal against Argentines Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 6-4 7-6(5) and secure top spot in the doubles list.
“It hasn't sunk in fully, to be honest,” said the right-hander from Bangalore, who could also win his first Grand Slam men’s doubles title this weekend.
“We are very, very proud. I think Indian tennis, India needed this. You know, we don't really have many tennis players coming up. Sport is slowly coming up. I think it's just going to inspire a lot of people.”