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Upset artist Kaia Kanepi hits again.
The 35-year-old Estonian veteran took power over defensive champion and No.4 Sofia Kenin of the United States, 6-3, 6-2, eliminated the player with the highest seed from the tournament to date as she moves into the third round of the Australian Open for the third time.
Despite the difference in their rankings – Kanepi is currently at World No.65 to No. 4 at Kenin – Kanepi has executed a litany of upsets during his career. This is her 13th win over a typical Top 10 player, eight of whom have come at Grand Slam tournaments.
Former World No.15 Kanepi has also won six of her seven matches this season, having reached her first WTA singles final since 2013 just last week at the Cup Gippsland in Melbourne Park. Kanepi collected one of her patented actresses in last week’s run, a stunning finish to the 15-game winning streak at World No.7 Aryna Sabalenka in the second round.
Kanepi needed just 64 minutes to outscore Kenin on Thursday, completing the eight-game winning streak at the Australian Open. Kanepi’s power game was particularly consistent today as it has been for much of an Aussie swing: the Estonian added 22 wins (including 10 aces) to just 17 non-critical errors on the day.
The match was marked by the last game, where a 15-30 deficit was eliminated by Kanepi with three straight asses to win the win and last year’s list stun.
Kanepi has reached six Grand Slam finals in her career, but the Australian Open is one of only four majors where she has yet to make the elite eight. To keep her current run going and get a shot at her first Australian Open quarter-final, she will then have to face No.28 seed Donna Vekic from Croatia.
Vekic secured her spot in the third round with her own quick win, beating 2020 semifinalist Roland Garros Nadia Podoroska, 6-2, 6-2, in an hour on the dot.
Bencic, Mertens set up a tussle in the third round
A battle between the top 20 players will take place in the third round of the Australian Open, with No.11 seed Belinda Bencic and No.18 seed Elise Mertens coming to an end on Saturday.
The Swiss Bencic survived a shot put against Svetlana Kuznetsova, a two-time winner in Russia, gaining a 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 lead in two hours and 39 minutes.
“It was a tough game, as I expected against Kuznetsova,” Bencic said in his post-match press conference, after extending his head-to-head leadership over Russia to 4-2. “I was happy with the way I was fighting, really happy with the win without a doubt. But, yeah, it wasn’t easy out there. I was just trying to make it hard. “
In a decision set in which the returner held the edge more often than not, Bencic Kuznetsova broke four times, intercepted in the final game, to wake up the hard-hitting impact and her case was established by Mertens.
“I definitely think she’s a very consistent and solid player,” said Bencic, looking forward to her meeting at Mertens. “I played her in youth, but not in WTA. still. I’m looking forward to the game. I will definitely rest my mind today and tomorrow and just get back to focusing tomorrow afternoon and trying to find a tactic against it and a game plan. “
Mertens, meanwhile, continued his well-formed run with a challenging win of his own, defeating Zhu Lin in China, 7-6 (8), 6-1.
Mertens from Belgium, coming off her sixth WTA singles title at the Gippsland Cup last weekend (where she defeated Kaia Kanepi in the final), was waiting for two points. located in the first set tie against World No.94 Zhu.
After scoring in a grueling 67 minutes, Mertens progressed through the second set to make it into Australia’s third Open round for the fourth time in her four major attraction performances.
“I think the first set was very tight, as she reached the ball,” Mertens said in her post-match press conference. do it in two sets and especially win the first one.
“I think I played a little more aggressively in the second set, a little better, the first service came in more, so that definitely made a difference.”
Mertens ’best result came at her first major this year in her first appearance in the main draw, where she made her way to the 2018 semifinals.
More to come ….