Raonic stuns Wawrinka in a five set thriller

Zhang booked her place by battling past injured 15th seed Madison Keys 3-6, 6-3, 6-3. At this stage, he might not appear to represent the toughest of potential draws, but he does lead Raonic 2-0, and both of those matches were on surfaces (hard court and grass) that favored Raonic’s serve-based game.

But she managed that against Victoria Azarenka on Wednesday by telling herself “just believe that you can beat her… just forget the score, just play and go for it and try to play the best you can play”.

But, Wawrinka lifted his intensity and took the match to a fifth set.

Trying to reach his seventh consecutive Australian Open quarter-final, Murray survived a tension-filled affair in which he dropped serve four times and was tested by Australia’s No. 1 player.

Tomic, a Stuttgart stud whom spent nearly 20 years in Australia was put forward to face a rather emotional Murray was overpowered by the intensity of the match.

The British world number two ended the remaining home interest in the Grand Slam with a 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) win over 16th-seeded Tomic to set up a last-eight match with Spanish baseliner David Ferrer. He then served out the match at love.

Murray returned to Melbourne Park on Sunday to resume practice having spent a few hours with Sears.

Zhang needed to win three matches in qualifying, so she’s on a seven-match winning streak in Melbourne.

“Tough match in general, for sure”, said Wawrinka.

Djokovic lost in the quarterfinals to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2010, then won the tournament in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He also beat Ferrer on his favorite surface, clay, in four sets at last year’s French Open.

Milos Raonic has set another first for Canadian men in tennis by reaching the semifinals of the Australian Open.

Kerber, who saved a match point in her first-round win over Misaki Doi, is into the quarterfinals for the first time in Australia.

Raonic, who earlier spoke of his grief over a high school shooting in his home country, eliminated the Swiss world number four 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-3 and will face Gael Monfils in the quarters.

Monfils delighted the Margaret Court Arena crowd with his acrobatic game, including a full-stretch dive that resulted in him needing an injury timeout for treatment on his right hand.

He said it hurts sometimes landing on the hard courts as he chases balls other players would leave, adding “Maybe something snaps in my mind, and I just go for it…” He will play No 13 Milos Raonic.

The 14th-seeded Azarenka will take on No. 7 Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals.

Sears collapsed on Rod Laver Arena on Saturday while he watched Ana Ivanovic, whom he coaches, and was rushed straight to a Melbourne hospital.

Konta’s quarter-final appearance means that Britain has male and female representation in the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since 1977. Wawrinka had come back from two sets down six previous times in majors, and had the momentum in the third and fourth sets but it swung again when his attempted passing shot landed long in the sixth game of the fifth, giving Raonic the decisive break.

Murray maintained his record of never losing a tour-level match against an Australian, and has now won all 17 of his meetings against Australian opposition.