Third seed Muguruza bundled out by Strycova

Victoria Azarenka of Belarus celebrates after defeating Naomi Osaka of Japan during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016.

Two women who have impressed at the Australian Open this year face off in an interesting clash as Barbora Strycova takes on 3rd seed Garbine Muguruza on the fifth day of the tournament.

Czech Republic’s Barbora Strycova hits a shot during her third round match against Spain’s Garbine Muguruza at the Australian Open tennis tournament at Melbourne Park, Australia, January 23, 2016.

Australian Open organizers didn’t provide any confirmation on Sears or his condition, although stadium announcer Craig Willis told the Rod Laver Arena crowd: “Nigel Sears had a turn, as we all saw”.

“It’s not easy against Garbine because she plays fast. But first I just want to enjoy that I won today”.

“Today is a very bad day at the office”, said Muguruza. “I’m sure not just in that small community but throughout Canada it was a lot of people that were sort of heartbroken over it”.

Muguruza’s flop pits her alongside second seed Simona Halep, sixth seed Petra Kvitova and eighth seed Venus Williams as top 10 players who have failed to make the tournament’s second week.

Azarenka has now dropped just five games through three matches in Melbourne.

No. 13-seed Raonic defeated Viktor Troicki 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 and dedicated his win to the victims of a shooting in Canada.

“I think we’ve played one time”.

Wawrinka was on-court for just under two hours in his straight sets win over Lukas Rosol, but admitted post-match he had been suffering a “little cold” throughout the first week.

Azarenka had 24 winners to only four for Osaka, who was making her Grand Slam main draw debut.

Osaka will have to play the match of her life if she is to get the better of Azarenka, who said yesterday she was feeling in great shape “body-wise, spirit-wise, everything-wise”.

Raonic did not face a single break point on his serve as he breezed through the first two sets on Margaret Court Arena but had to fight back from an early break in the third to record the 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 win. “It was my first time (to play her)”, said Azarenka.

Strycova has only been past the third round once before in 38 Grand Slams, and that was when she reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2014. At the top of the second half of the women’s draw, Brengle takes on seventh-seeded Angelique Kerber, while No. 15 Keys, in the bottom quarter, plays former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic.

The Spaniard was looking to reach the last 16 for a third consecutive Australian Open, while Strycova was aiming for a maiden place in the second week in Melbourne. I have said that many times that I had a person (ask) me, “are you depressed?’ I said, ‘no”.