Iga Swiatek was pushed to three sets, but the number seven seed from Poland eventually prevailed over Sorana Cirstea of Romania 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 on Monday to reach her first Australian Open quarterfinal.
The 2020 Roland Garros champion is into her first Grand Slam quarterfinal outside of Paris, where she also reached the last eight in 2021. However, she had to survive a stern test from World No.38 Cirstea before ultimately triumphing in a hard-fought two-hour and 28-minute battle.
Swiatek was the only player last season to make the fourth round or better at all four Grand Slam events. Despite being pushed hard by Cirstea, Swiatek now has a 29-2 win-loss record against opponents ranked outside the Top 30 in her Grand Slam history.
At Rod Laver Arena, Jannik Sinner maintained his perfect start to the season as he reached the QFs of the AO for the first time with a high-quality 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-4 win over Alex de Minaur.
The 11th seed, who is yet to taste defeat in 2022, ended Australian men's singles hopes in Melbourne with an accomplished fourth-round performance to extend his ATP head-to-head series lead over World No. 42 De Minaur to 3-0. The 20-year-old Italian has dropped just one set en route to the last eight at Melbourne Park.
( With inputs from ANI )
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