Highlights:
- Caroline Garcia lost in straight sets to Magda Linette.
- Linda Fruhvirtova put up a strong fight but was unsuccessful.
- Karolina Pliskova and Aryna Sabalenka also advanced to the quarterfinals.
Magda Linette pulled off a significant shock by eliminating World No. 4 Caroline Garcia from the Australian Open 2023. At the Rod Laver Arena on January 23, Linette defeated Garcia 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 in the Round of 16 match. Additionally, Linette was playing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal matchup against No. 30 seed Karolina Pliskova.
Linette was competing in the WTA Arena against one of the players who has been in the best form recently, so the odds were stacked heavily against her. After entering a tie-breaker, the first set ended on a cliffhanger. Garcia seized a 2-0 lead early on and was poised to win the set, but Linette had other plans.
The next seven points were all wins for Linette as she easily won the opening set. Both players competed strongly against one another at 4-4 in the second set. Garcia’s serve was broken by Linette, though, and that proved to be the game-changing moment in the match.
When you beat the No.16, No.19 and No.4 seeds on your way to a maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal 🙌@MagdaLinette • @wwos • @espn • @eurosport • @wowowtennis • #AusOpen • #AO2023 pic.twitter.com/xBtdR3dphu
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 23, 2023
Linda Fruhvirtova, 17, lost to Donna Vekic in an exciting three-set match at the Margaret Court Arena, ending her remarkable run at the Australian Open. She lost the match in two hours and seven minutes, 2-6, 1-6, 3-6.
Early in the deciding set, Fruhvirtova obtained a break of serve, but she was shortly broken. Later, Vekic easily won the set and the match by breaking her opponent’s serve in yet another time.
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Karoline Pliskova, 30, also advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Zhang Shuai of China in straight sets. At the Kia Arena, she defeated the rival 6-0, 6-4.
The No. 12 seed Belinda Bencic was eliminated from the tournament earlier in the day by World No. 5 Aryna Sabalenka. Bencic was defeated by Sabalenka 7-5, 6-2 to advance to the next round.
