In the second round, Caroline Wozniacki had to save match points in order to stay in the tournament but today the second seed looked completely in control of the situation during her fourth-round match against Magdalena Rybáriková. Although the Slovak had a strong start, it didn’t take long for Wozniacki to get back in the game and dominate the rest of the encounter, playing her best match of the tournament. The former world number one and currently second seed only needed 63 minutes to defeat Magdalena Rybáriková 6-3, 6-0 and secure her place in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the first time since 2012.

Carla Suarez Navarro will be the opponent of Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals. The Dane has faced the Spaniard on seven occasions, only losing two of them.

Rybáriková halts after brilliant start

The match started with neither player willing to drop her serve, but it was Rybáriková who showed more signs of aggressiveness at the start of this match. The offensive game the Slovak adopted paid off when in the third game she converted two break points after hitting a running forehand winner and therefore earning an early lead of 3-1. However, Wozniacki wasn’t going to stay behind much longer and forced the Slovak to fight to keep her serve and the lead. The Dane would need five opportunities to convert the break but she did it in a fashionable way with a drop shot.

Back on serve at 2-2, Wozniacki had managed to revert the situation and had a comfortable game of service to hold to 3-2. As the Dane’s confidence increased, Rybáriková’s unforced errors were also on the rise as she was not able to keep up with Wozniacki’s great defensive skills. The Slovak then went on to hit her first double fault on break point. The momentum had turned to the Dane’s side and she didn’t give any signs of letting it go as she confirmed the break and extended her lead to 5-2.

Caroline Wozniacki hits a tweener during her fourth round match of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill)
Caroline Wozniacki hits a tweener during her fourth round match of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill)

The Slovak managed to stay in the set for a bit longer as she held her serve and now put the pressure on Wozniacki to claim the first set. The Dane struggled at the start of her service game, but soon enough she was right back on track with a set point. The former world number one needed only 36 minutes to seal with a forehand winner the first set 6-4.

Wozniacki dominates to return to the quarterfinals in Melbourne

Wozniacki started the set strong, making excellent use of her defensive skills to get a triple break point that Rybáriková wasn’t even able to attempt to save as she double-faulted to give the early break. The domination from the Dane continued, winning the last eight points to get a lead of 2-0. In the third game, Rybáriková seemed to have found a way to get herself onto the scoreboard but Wozniacki turned things around getting a break point after a return winner and then converting the break when the Slovak hit a long ball.

At 3-0, things couldn’t be better for the former world number one but the Slovak put pressure on the Dane’s serve as she quickly raced to a 30-0 lead, but once again Wozniacki remained calm and found a way to reverse the situation, winning four points in a row to extend her lead to 4-0.

Magdalena Rybarikova in action during her fourth round of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Caroline Wozniacki hits a tweener during her fourth round match of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill))
Magdalena Rybarikova in action during her fourth round of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Caroline Wozniacki hits a tweener during her fourth round match of the Australian Open. (Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill))

At this point of the match, Rybáriková seemed to have no more options to turn around the score,  especially since the Dane was not giving her any space to even win a point. The match turned into a critical situation for Rybáriková when she faced three break points and her demise was confirmed with a long forehand that put Wozniacki 5-0. Serving for the match, the Dane was in a comfortable position and she showed no sign of nerves when a backhand winner brought up two match points that were converted when the Slovak fired a wide backhand.

 

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Liliana Martinez
Sports Journalist from Mexico City