Sharapova sinks defending champion Wozniacki in Australian Open 3rd round

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Patna : Defending champion and World No 3 in WTA rankings Caroline Wozniacki, 28, Denmark, suffered a shock defeat at the hand of 2008 champion and World No 30 Maria Sharapova, 31, Russia, in the 3rd round of  Australian Open at Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, on January 18, 2019.

Sharapova stunned Wozniacki 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to enter the Round of 16 of the tournament. Both the players served % Aces each in the match. Sharapova, however, committed 7 double faults to 3 by Wozniacki. Sharapova, winner of 5 Grand Slam titles, won 5 break points to 3 by Wozniacki. She also won 5 games in a row in the match while Wozniacki won 3. Sharapova’s winning percentage on both her first and second serve was much better than that of Wozniacki.

World No 5 Sloane Stephens, 25, USA, also entered the 4th round after defeating World No 32 Petra Martic, 27, Croatia, 7-6, 7-6 in the third round. Both the players won 3 break points each in the match. Stephens, the 2017 US Open Champion, won 3 games in a row in the match while Martic won 2. Stephens also served 3 Aces while Martic served 1. Martic’s winning percentage on both her first and second serve was better than that of Stephens.

World No 2 and winner of three Grand Slam titles Angelique Kerber, 28, Germany, also advanced to the 4th round defeating World No 240 Kimberly Birrell, 20, Australia, 6-1, 6-0 in the third round. Kerber, winner of Australian Open title in 2016, won 5 break points in the match besides winning 9 games in a row.

World No 87 Amanda Anisimova, 17, USA, stunned World No 11 Aryna Sabalenka, 20, Belarus, 6-3, 6-2 in the third round to enter the Round of 16. Anisimova won 4 break points besides winning 5 games in a row in the match.