World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka has ended the challenge of precocious American teen Iva Jovic to move within one win of a fourth straight Australian Open final appearance.
Contesting her maiden grand slam quarter-final, Jovic started nervously against the powerhouse Belarusian on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old settled in time to make a contest of the first set before Sabalenka went up another gear on a searing hot day in Melbourne to win 6-3 6-0 in one hour and 29 minutes.
The roof on Rod Laver Arena was closed immediately after the match finished as the temperature surged towards 40 degrees Celsius.
Sabalenka lifted the AO title in 2023 and 2024, before losing last year’s title match to American Madison Keys.
The four-time major champion has won 25 of her past 26 matches at Melbourne Park and will next play either US No.3 seed Coco Gauff or No.12 seed Elina Svitolina from Ukraine in the semi-finals on Thursday.
The top seed also beat another rising teen star, Canada’s Victoria Mboko, in the round of 16.
“That’s two teenagers who have tested me in the last couple of rounds,” said Sabalenka, who has yet to drop a set in five matches this year at Melbourne Park.
“She’s an an incredible player and it was a tough match.
“Don’t look at the score because it wasn’t easy at all.
“She played incredible tennis.”
The 29th-seeded Jovic was the lowest-ranked men’s or women’s player to reach the last eight at Melbourne Park at a tournament which has pretty much gone to script in the opening 10 days.
She was the youngest woman to reach the AO quarter-finals since Nicole Vaidosova in 2007 and the youngest to do so without dropping a set since Venus Williams in 1998.
Before progressing to the senior ranks, Jokic won the prestigious Orange Bowl junior tournament, as well as girls’ doubles titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon.
https://thewest.com.au/sport/tennis/red-hot-sabalenka-downs-jovic-in-searing-melbourne-heat-c-21437452
