Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Danielle Collins meet in the first ladies quarter-final of the Australian Open 2019 on Tuesday which also happens to be the only ladies last-eight clash between two unseeded players. Collins is ranked 35th while Pavlyuchenkova is ranked seven spots below her.
Clearly, nobody envisaged them to make a run to the quarterfinals when the draw was announced.
Their grit and determination are what made them stand out and reach this stage in a Major. Collins is absolutely not acquainted with the second week of a Slam, having never made it past the first round in any before this. Being totally unfamiliar with the pressure and the demands of a Slam, the kind of sensational campaign she has had this past week deserves every bit of applause.
The 25-year-old American has upset the second seed Angelique Kerber, the 14th seed Julia Georges and the 19th seed Caroline Garcia. Her demolition of the in-form Kerber, where she dropped only a couple of games, was stunning.
If anything, it absolutely validates how much confidence she has right now in herself and in her game.
The 27-year-old Pavlyuchenkova has, of course, way more experience than her opponent. She has been a former World No. 13 and has reached at least the quarterfinals of every Major tournament.
However, since her title victory in Strasbourg in May, she did not manage to get past the quarters in any tournament. Suffice to say her career graph has dipped in the last few months as she looks for every opportunity to get back to where she once belonged.
Whether this Australian Open finally gives her the chance to make that comeback she had been looking for, remains to be seen. Her wins over the fifth seed Sloane Stephens and the ninth seed Kiki Bertens gave ample glimpses of the talent she possesses.
It will be interesting to see if she can hold her nerves and get past a highly motivated opponent with a maiden Slam semifinal being on the line for both.
Here is all you need to know about the match:
Match: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Danielle Collins
Date: 22. 01. 2019.
Round: Quarterfinals
Time: Not before 2:30 pm AEDT or 9 am IST; it is the third match on the Rod Laver Arena in the morning session.
Where to Watch Details:
India: Matches will be shown live on TV on Sony SIX, Sony SIX HD, Sony Ten 2, and Sony Ten 2 HD. Matches can also be streamed live on SonyLiv.
USA: ESPN2 and Tennis Channel.
Australia: Channel 9 - Wide World of Sports, 9Gem, and 9Now.
Europe: Eurosport TV channel and on the Eurosport Player live streaming service
All matches can also be streamed live on the official Australian Open website.
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