Johanna Konta put on another impressive victory to move on at the Australian Open. The top ranked Brit left in the tournament controlled things in straight sets to beat Ekaterina Makarova
6-1, 6-4 on Margaret Court Arena Monday. What was thought to be another tough fight turned into a comeback in the second set for the British star that advanced her to the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.
The Brit holds a substantial lead over the Russian in career win meetings going into the fourth round. The 25-year-old even took a three setter that advanced her to the quarters in last year’s tournament where the two went beyond regulation in the final set. With the same sort of action expected once more, the Russian clearly has a lot on her plate to be successful as many of the top players have fallen early on. With her facing a ninth seed for a second time at the exact spot, her hopes of turning the tides would depend on the pace set from the start.
Konta ran fast with a quick win on her serve followed by strong defense in the second game. Makarova’s forehand began creating errors that lost her the game while handing her opponent an easy double break. She tried getting back at Konta in the third with a fight on deuce but the winning streak remained strong for the ninth seed whose winning frustrated the Russian.
Knowing that she had to regroup on the second try worked out for her holding strong against Konta to get in the set. The win did not allow her to make a difference on the Brit’s service as she got back on track winning the fifth. Konta got another break against Makarova answering every service shot that came her way. She returned to service for the set gaining two points landing a winner that closed it out in 24 minutes.
It was clear that the world number ten had everything well going for her landing five aces while maintaining a 78 percent success rate on the first serve. With the 11 winners and just four unforced errors playing a supporting role, it could turn into a landslide if Makarova failed to get a grip in the second.
Despite challenges on her opening serve, the Russian got on the board first holding Konta to a single break. The Brit answered back in the second with a perfect love service but it didn’t stop Makarova from do better in the set. She continued holding service against Konta gaining a two-point hold in the third that gained her plenty of support from the crowd. The set went into the Russian’s hands who gained a break in her very next game followed by a hold to take a 3-1 lead. She saw it come apart in the fifth when she committed a double fault getting her into trouble. A winner got her back the advantage before clinching the hold of service.
The momentum was in Makarova’s hands getting a second break that had her up in the score. She knocked the Brit’s second serve off course to gain the leverage and be a contender. An important break in the seventh got Konta back within a game despite a dismal second serve. With the ball in hand for the eighth, the 25-year-old recorded two aces on the Russian but still had a fight from across court. She got on game point on Makarova’s forehand error followed by another that completely erased her lead.
Things only got worse for Makarova as her first serve suffered greatly losing on four unforced errors handing Konta a chance for the match. The Russian wasn’t going to give in easily landing a winner in the rally to take first point. Konta handed another with a second double fault on the match followed by a long ball to end a rally. It was Makarova’s to win with a triple break but lost one on a bad return that came in low for her.
A line drive from Konta put her in reach of deuce with a winner away from Makarova. It came in the shape of an ace giving her eight on the day hoping for a full comeback. She got it locked down after two breaks where the second match point landed on a wide return from Konta giving her the straight sets win after one hour and nine minutes.
“I’m really happy to have come through that,” she said to Ian Cullen during her on court interview. “I think I came out playing at a high level that she did but she was able to really able pull herself back into the match and made it really difficult for me. I’m just happy to give myself another game to play another match here.”
When asked about her next opponent being Serena Williams, she gave a chuckle before making a strong statement on her quarterfinal match. “It’s an incredible experience for me,” she said. “She’s one of the few players still playing that I watched growing up so as a young girl wanting to be a professional tennis player, its honestly an incredible honor and can’t wait to share the court with her.”
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