Novak Djokovic versus Daniil Medvedev is underway. Follow it here.
The reward for Serena Williams is a quarter-final against Karolina Pliskova, the seventh seed. Pliskova beat Williams in the US Open in 2016 - but Williams turned the tables on the Czech at Flushing Meadows last year. The American will start as the heavy favourite, though Pliskova will have a chance with her big serve.
Celebrating the win in the #icebath ❄️ Getting ready for next battle #AceQueenTeam pic.twitter.com/VN5tOo6fkG
— Karolina Pliskova (@KaPliskova) January 21, 2019
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Serena Williams speaks! “It was an intense match and there were some incredible points. But I love playing tennis. It’s really cool to be back out playing on this court. I really needed to elevate my game. She’s the number one player in the world. I’m such a fighter. I just never give up. It’s definitely something that’s innate. It’s a miracle I’m here and I get to do something I enjoy. This is my job and it’s a super pleasure. That keeps me motivated and keep fighting for every point.”
Serena Williams beats Simona Halep 6-1, 4-6, 6-4!
Serving to stay in the match, Williams falls to 0-15 after a tight error. Halep isn’t going anywhere just yet. A brutal rally ensues - but Williams wins it with a brilliant forehand. Then she makes it 30-15 with a quick serve, before earning two match points with a marvellous backhand from left to right. Halep goes for broke - but it’s all over when she sends a forehand long! That’s it! The world No1’s out after a titanic tussle. They share a warm embrace at the net - it was a spectacular match in the end.
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Third set: Halep* 1-6, 6-4, 4-5 Williams (*denotes server): Serving to stay in the match, Halep’s relieved to make it 40-0. She sends a backhand down the line to hold to love and give herself a fighting chance.
Third set: Halep 1-6, 6-4, 3-5 Williams* (*denotes server): Looking to consolidate the crucial break, Williams is happy with a 30-0 lead. Halep, a little forlorn now, sends a forehand long for 40-0. She holds to 15 and moves a game away from the quarter-finals.
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Third set: Halep* 1-6, 6-4, 3-4 Williams (*denotes server): The game goes to 30-all, Halep the one to feel the pressure now. She’s relieved to see Williams knock a forehand return just wide. But the game goes to deuce - and Williams punishes a second serve with a forehand return. Break point. Williams steps it up - and Halep nets a tame forehand!
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Third set: Halep 1-6, 6-4, 3-3 Williams* (*denotes server): Halep keeps hitting it deep, keeps throwing her punches, and makes it 0-30 with a glorious forehand at the end of another dynamite rally. Williams needs her serve: it helps her to 30-all. But Halep won’t give her a moment’s peace now. She hustles across the baseline, defends brilliantly and forces Williams to net. 30-40. Break point. Williams looks stunned - but a huge first serve makes it deuce. This is turning into an epic. On the run, Halep rips a stonking forehand down the line to earn a second break point and leave Williams flailing. Yet Williams throws Halep a deep, awkward high ball and the Romanian, her balance off, hooks a forehand wide. There’s no respite for Williams, though, Halep attacking a second serve and earning a third chance with a backhand winner. Williams responds with an ace out wide. She holds with a venomous forehand down the line.
Third set: Halep* 1-6, 6-4, 3-2 Williams (*denotes server): Williams is annoyed with herself after dropping a backhand wide for 15-0. It goes to 30-0 and then Halep makes it 40-0 with a mishit forehand. She holds to love.
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Third set: Halep 1-6, 6-4, 2-2 Williams* (*denotes server): Williams makes it 40-0 with her seventh ace of the match. Another top serve is enough for a love hold.
Third set: Halep* 1-6, 6-4, 2-1 Williams (*denotes server): Halep rolls into a 40-0 lead. What a change it’s been from the first set. She holds to love when Williams drops a forehand wide.
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Third set: Halep 1-6, 6-4, 1-1 Williams* (*denotes server): The game starts with a punishing rally, which ends with Williams losing it with a dreadful drop shot for 0-15. The game goes to 30-all. Williams double-faults at 40-30. Deuce. But Williams finds her serve and holds.
Third set: Halep* 1-6, 6-4, 1-0 Williams (*denotes server): Into a decider we go, with Halep serving first, and serving well. Her first serves are landing and that’s giving her room to breathe. But just when it seems this game’s done, with Halep up 40-15, Williams fights to deuce - and earns a break point with a pinpoint forehand. Halep responds with a forehand down the line, enough to force Williams to stoop and net a backhand. She holds, dominating from the baseline, Williams the one to look unsteady on her feet this time.
Simona Halep wins the second set 6-4 to level the match!
Serving to stay in the set, Williams is under pressure at 0-30. Williams uses her serve to fight back to 30-all. But Halep earns a set point with a precise winner down the line! Williams misses a serve down the middle. They rally off a second serve. Halep stays firm, repelling everything - and Williams cracks, dragging a backhand wide! What fight from the world No1, who looked down and out half an hour ago!
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Second set: Halep* 1-6, 5-4 Williams (*denotes server): Halep holds to 15. Well, Williams will have to serve to stay in the set.
Second set: Halep 1-6, 4-4 Williams* (*denotes server): Williams looks in control at 40-0. Halep fights back to 40-30. But Williams puts a stop to any funny business with an ace.
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Second set: Halep* 1-6, 4-3 Williams (*denotes server): Williams is annoyed after another net cord goes Halep’s way. A little frustration’s rising in the American. That’s all the encouragement Halep needs to make off with the game, holding to 15 with an ace down the middle.
Second set: Halep 1-6, 3-3 Williams* (*denotes server): Williams knuckles down, holding to 15.
Second set: Halep* 1-6, 3-2 Williams (*denotes server): Remembering that she’s the world No1, Halep skips into a 40-0 lead. She polishes off her first love hold with a backhand down the line. This is impressively gutsy from Halep, who easily could have crumbled after that torrid first set. But she’s kept in mind that Williams could hardly have played better.
Second set: Halep 1-6, 2-2 Williams* (*denotes server): Halep musters some resistance, drilling a forehand down the line for 30-40. Williams cancels out the break point with an ace. But Halep keeps fighting. Another chance comes her way - and Williams nets a backhand!
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Second set: Halep* 1-6, 1-2 Williams (*denotes server): Halep’s grateful for a lucky net cord going her way at 0-15; she needs everything she can get. But Williams is relentless. Two break points come her way and she converts the first with a blistering forehand return.
Second set: Halep 1-6, 1-1 Williams* (*denotes server): Williams rams a backhand down the line to hold to love. Just stunning.
Second set: Halep* 1-6, 1-0 Williams (*denotes server): On it goes, Williams starting set two with a lovely volley for 0-15. Halep makes herself feel better with her first ace of the match. Williams responds to that with a brilliant backhand lob. Halep scampers back to retrieve it, but her reward is to see a forehand fizz back past her for 15-30. Somehow Halep digs deep, finding her best tennis to move to 40-30. Can she hold? Yes! A superb forehand gets her off the mark at last. Maybe this isn’t over yet.
Serena Williams wins the first set 6-1!
In the blink of an eye, Williams has three set points. An ace does the job. That was a spectacular set from the 16th seed. She’s only taken 20 minutes to make the world No1 look very ordinary indeed.
First set: Halep* 1-5 Williams (*denotes server): It’s a demolition job so far from Williams, who is hounding Halep at every turn, pulling the Romanian all over the place and forcing so many desperate errors from her. Halep, looking for a solution, sends a hopeful forehand wide to make it 0-40. Williams botches the first two, but it’s only a matter of time. A crushing forehand return does the job.
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First set: Halep 1-4 Williams* (*denotes server): Back comes Halep, returning well to make it 0-30. But Williams stays cool, leaning on her serve to win the next four points and hold to 30, consolidating the break. The set will be all but over if Halep can’t hold now.
First set: Halep* 1-3 Williams (*denotes server): You sense that Halep doesn’t have a strong enough serve to deal with the power coming at her from the other end of the court. Williams is really going after her second serve and moves into a 15-30 lead with more venomous hitting. It’s not long before Williams has two break points. She takes the first when Halep sends a backhand long. This feels ominous.
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First set: Halep 1-2 Williams* (*denotes server): This is brilliant from Williams, a series of controlled but brutal groundstrokes taking her into a 40-0 lead, Halep nowhere near any of them. Williams holds to 30.
''Please welcome world no.1.."
— SimoReactions (@Simoreactions) January 21, 2019
*Serena enters*
''Oh wait''
😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/VmNHwVb90z
First set: Halep* 1-1 Williams (*denotes server): After that fast start from Halep, Williams looks to respond in kind. She moves into a 0-30 lead and earns three break points with a coruscating forehand return. Halep challenges in vain. 0-40. Halep saves the first two, but Williams takes control on the third, penetrating Halep’s defences with a big forehand before polishing off the point at the net to break back straight away.
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First set: Halep 1-0 Williams* (*denotes server): It’s Serena Williams to open the serving. But it’s Simona Halep who comes hurtling out of the blocks, racing into a 0-30 lead. The Romanian’s in the zone here, showing plenty of aggression and ramming a forehand down the line to earn three break points in double quick time. Williams’s response? A double fault. Crikey. Halep breaks to love.
The players are out on court. We’ll have tennis soon!
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Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev meet on Rod Laver Arena once Serena Williams and Simona Halep are done. Meanwhile Borna Coric and Lucas Pouille have split the first two sets in their fourth-round match, while Kei Nishikori and Pablo Carreno Busta are playing out a tight first set.
So what’s happened so far today? I’ll tell ya! Elina Svitolina beat Madison Keys 6-2, 1-6, 6-1 and the fifth seed has a quarter-final against US Open champion Naomi Osaka, who saw off Anastasija Sevastova 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. The winner of this match, meanwhile, will play Karolina Pliskova, who’s thumped Garbine Muguruza.
On the men’s side Milos Raonic destroyed Alexander Zverev, who responded by destroying his racket. Raonic is a former semi-finalist here, so it’s not such a surprise that the 16th seed won that one - but Zverev is the world No4 and we’re still waiting for him to win a big match at a grand slam.
Preamble
Hello. One sister down, one more to go. But despite crushing Venus Williams in the third round two days ago, seeing off Serena Williams is going to be a much harder task for Simona Halep. Williams might be the world No16, but don’t let her ranking fool you. She’s 37 years old, but don’t let her age fool you. There’s no doubt that Williams remains the most feared player around. She’s cruised into the fourth round for the loss of just nine games and didn’t lose a set in the first week; those are the numbers that deserve your attention.
That said, this is going to be a much better test of the American great’s level than anything she’s encountered so far. Halep isn’t the greatest player of all time, unlike her opponent today, but she is the current world No1 and banished much of the self-doubt that used to grip her game by winning the French Open last year. The Romanian had a couple of scares in the first week, dropping sets to Kaia Kanepi and Sofia Kenin, but she was faultless against Venus and it certainly won’t be a shock if she wins this one, even though Serena leads 8-1 in their head-to-head. It isn’t an easy one to call. You probably have to give Williams the slight edge, but this is a match worthy of a final. Let’s just hope the tennis lives up to the hype.
Play begins at: 8am GMT, 7pm in Melbourne.
