Australian Open 2017: Konta beats Makarova, ready to face Serena

Serena Williams remained on track for an Open-era record 23rd Grand Slam title after beating ninth-seeded Johanna Konta 6-2, 6-3 in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old Spaniard finished stronger in the 4-hour, 6-minute match on Rod Laver Arena as Zverev, widely touted as a Grand Slam champion of the future, tightened up with cramping and nerves. Konta’s got a good serve like Williams, and she will need to get plenty of first serves in and a few cheap points like aces to disrupt Williams, also the Brit can exploit a few weaknesses of the second seed and she can play some slices which Strycova did to unsettle the 35-year-old.

Australian-born Johanna Konta will face an uphill battle when faces tennis legend Serena Williams for a place in the semi-finals.

Elsewhere, Dominika Cibulkova became the latest top seed to crash out when she was upset by Russian dark horse Ekaterina Makarova in a marathon third-round match.

“I love this game and I honestly have nothing to lose”.

“I don’t think Serena Williams needs an introduction with everything that she’s achieved in this sport”, Konta said.

“I think she was hitting the ball really well, playing fast”, Pliskova said.

“When your brother is not playing well, you can see him struggling, you can empathise, it’s like a piece of you is playing bad”.

“All I can say is it’s been a wonderful, wonderful career for me, full of positives”.

Often it is not only her mother Oracene (front, middle) in Serena’s box.

Konta, on a nine-match winning streak, is shaping as a genuine title contender after she demolished Makarova.

“I don’t necessarily think that Serena Williams possibly gets too anxious”, said Konta. “There may or may not be truth to that story”. It was the first-ever meeting between the two players, and Konta had little chance against those serves.

“It’s a congratulations for me being the oldest person in the draw or something like that”, she dead-panned. She wasn’t moving well. “Of course she can”, Mouratoglou said.

As ESPN analyst Chris Evert noted, “Every player thinks they have a shot now”.

But she has never faced Konta and the Brit does not seem to be anxious about the idea of being overwhelmed by the occasion. “I’d like to be a champion, in particular this year”.

The American Nicole Gibbs said after her compatriot overwhelmed her in the third round that playing Williams was like playing the player and playing the legend. She’s repeatedly emphasized she’s worked hard in the past year on maintaining her composure in high-stakes matches like this and is eager to see how she will react.

Strycova said that, despite the advancing years, Serena was still the dominant force in women’s tennis. “I don’t think she’s exhausted or anything”. “I saw that she believed she could beat anyone”. Hopefully I can play better.

“I have prepared myself as much as possible to play a competitor like Serena”.