It’s a blockbuster day ticket at the Australian Open as a historically dominant tournament from the top seeds creates a mouth-watering set of quarter-finals.
See all the news from Day 11 of the Australian Open below!
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Follow live updates from Day 11 at Melbourne Park below, and scroll down for more news!
‘ARE WE TENNIS PLAYERS? OR ARE WE ZOO ANIMALS?’
After footage went viral of Coco Gauff’s behind the scenes blow-up on Tuesday night, world No.2 Iga Swiatek has hit out at cameras in the players area.
Swiatek lost in straight sets to Elena Rybakina in their quarter-final clash on Wednesday, and was fired up in her press conference.
The Polish superstar was filmed being denied access as she did not have her accreditation with her earlier in the tournament.
While it drew many laughs on social media, Swiatek is fed up with the lack of privacy players are afforded in the walkaways and the gym.
“The question is, are we tennis players? Or are we animals in the zoo? Where they are observed even when they’re pooping,” Swiatek replied when asked if she thought there should be more privacy off the back of the Gauff incident.
“Okay, that was exaggerating obviously, but it would be nice to have some privacy. It would be nice also to have you own process and not always be observed.
“For example, in other sports, you have some technical things you wanna do. It would be nice to have some space you can do that without the whole world watching.
“On Wimbledon there are courts where people with accreditation can get there but it’s without the fans. There are some tournaments where it’s impossible and you’re constantly observed.
“I don’t think it should be like that because we are tennis players. We’re meant to be watched on court and in the press. That’s our job.
“It’s not our job to be a meme when you forget your accreditation.
“It’s funny for sure. People have something to talk about. For us, I don’t think it’s necessary.”
Earlier in the day, former world No.1 Andy Roddick shared his belief that tennis players should be given a private space where they “can just detonate” after watching Coco Gauff’s racquet smash on Tuesday night.
The American was angry with herself after winning just three games in a quarter-final loss to Elina Svitolina that lasted less than hour.
But the third seed waited until she was in the doldrums beneath Rod Laver Arena to exercise her rage, where she thought there were no cameras.
Gauff was caught out by broadcasters, and then was forced to field questions about her behaviour during her press conference.
The two-time grand slam champion said she believes broadcasters should not air those sorts of moments, while fellow American Roddick weighed in with his take that tennis tournaments should offer rage rooms.
“She is as buttoned up as any 21 year old I think I’ve ever seen in this game. Yeah like everyone’s talking about Andreeva and Jovic and you know, Mboko, and yeah Tien is 20. Coco’s 21. She’s 21. It gets forgotten in every conversation,” Roddick said on his podcast ‘Served with Andy Roddick’.
“Can she go somewhere where she can just detonate? Can she just be allowed to be pissed? Also, can there be a unisex place for people to have a private conversation and/or break something?”
The 2003 US Open champion added: “I get that you don’t want people doing it all the time. I broke racquets. I shouldn’t have. It’s not a good example.
“But it’s a slippery slope to say it’s a bad example for people watching. It’s sports. Does anyone ever tell the NBA not to say something to a ref? There isn’t a moral reckoning every time someone cusses at a referee.”
Roddick also stressed that a private space is needed for discussions between player and team.
Particularly in the women’s game, many players have male coaches and therefore, they cannot be in the locker room together.
It means there post-match debriefs are likely to take place either where the cameras can see them, or once they leave the precinct.
Roddick believes that is not good enough.
“But can there be a unisex place for people to have a private conversation or break something? Just a break room,” he said.
“If there’s no place outside the locker rooms to lose it, how are you ever going to have an intense conversation with your coach if they’re not the same gender?
“You shouldn’t have to wait until you get back to the hotel or into a car.
“We don’t hear every conversation when an NFL coach is laying into his team, and I don’t know that we should be privy to that.
“Public spaces are great. I just think players should know where, when, how, and if there’s a spot they can go to be normal and petulant.”
Roddick went on to say that he does not believe they should do away with all the behind the scenes cameras.
“It’s fun when you see Carlos come in, shake hands, laugh, joke. It shows personality,” Roddick said.
“When Sabalenka finds a camera and plays with it, that’s fun. It’s like the walk-ins at NBA or WNBA games. That’s great.”
But the four-time semi-finalist at Melbourne Park stressed that there needs to be space away from the locker room for players to deal with their emotions in the heat of the moment.
Roddick cited his loss to Roger Federer in the 2009 Wimbledon final as a perfect example of why a different area is needed.
The American recalled that he was “crushed” so Federer and his team quickly escaped the locker room in order to not celebrate in front of him.
“That stinks too. There’s no natural place to go,” Roddick said.
“As a player, you’re also conscious of not stealing joy from someone else if you’re melting down. You don’t want your emotions interfering with theirs, but it’s a highly emotional moment.”
‘ENORMOUS SCANDAL’ TO REACH NEW HEIGHTS WITH SNEAKY TACTIC
The Australian Open’s battle with fitness tracking company WHOOP is set to blow up again.
World No.1s Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka have been both told to remove their WHOOP devices from their wrists at various stages of the tournament.
So too has defending men’s champion Jannik Sinner, who even went to the effort of trying to hide it beneath a sweatband.
The sneaky tactics are set to reach a new level as the tournament reaches the semi-finals.
WHOOP chief executive and founder Will Ahmed took to social media today to share the news that he will be sending top players undergarments to conceal their devices.
“We are here at WHOOP headquarters in the wake of an enormous scandal with the Australian Open,” Ahmed said in a video posted on social media.
“The Australian Open has come out saying that the world’s best tennis players cannot wear their WHOOP during matches. This is in direct contradiction to we’ve done with the International Tennis Federation that says that WHOOP can be worn in matches, and it’s safe to do so.
“We are going to be shipping out our WHOOP body apparel … you can wear WHOOP in your undergarments. We will be shipping boxers, bras and underwear to the world’s best tennis players at the Australian Open, and that will allow them to be wearing these garments in matches, should they so choose.
“Ultimately we’re here to protect the players’ interests and their right to understand their health and performance.”
This situation could get out of hand quickly if strip searches start taking place before a player can step out onto Rod Laver Arena.
WORLD NO.2 BLOWS SHOT AT HISTORIC FEAT
Iga Swiatek is out of this year’s Australian Open as she fell in straight sets to Elena Rybakina.
The fifth seed prevailed 7-5, 6-1 in one hour and 35 minutes with a dominant performance that was reminiscent of her form that won her last year’s WTA Finals.
Rybakina arrived in Melbourne as one of the favourites to take out the title, and she now has won eight straight matches against fellow top ten players.
She also has not dropped a set on her way to the semi-finals.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion faced off with Swiatek five times last year, but her come from behind victory in Saudi Arabia at the WTA Finals was the only time she got the better of the Polish superstar.
The script of their match-up has now flipped, however, with Rybakina’s more attacking approach causing problems for the world No.2.
“Yeah, we know each other pretty well and I was just trying to stay aggressive,” the Kazakh said.
“And I feel like in the first set for both of us, the first server was not really working. So we were trying to step in on the second serve, put pressure on each other, and I think in the second I just started to play more free, served better.
“And yeah, I’m just really happy with the win.”
For Swiatek, the quarter-final exit is a significant blow to her bid for a slice of history.
The Polish superstar demanded a day match against Aussie Maddison Inglis in the previous round, but the sunshine was not her friend today on Rod Laver Arena.
This tournament Swiatek had her first shot at winning the career grand slam after she triumphed at Wimbledon last year.
Maria Sharapova with her French Open victory in 2012 was the last woman to complete the historic feat for the first time – Serena Williams did it three times.
Swiatek will come back to Melbourne Park next year with that carrot still dangling in front of her.
Rybakina, meanwhile, will meet sixth seed Jessica Pegula in a semi-final on Thursday night.
Pegula reached the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time after defeating compatriot Amanda Anisimova in straight sets in the second match of the day on Rod Laver Arena.
The American toppled the world No.4 6-2, 7-6 in one hour and 35 minutes.
It was not all smoot sailing as the second set lasted more than an hour with Pegula down a break at 5-3 before she rallying to send it to a tiebreak.
Anisimova melted down after surrendering her advantage.
She double faulted seven times for the match, all of which came in the second set, and even shanked a serve almost into her player’s box at 5-5 in the second.
Pegula then seized the opportunity to breeze through the tiebreaker, taking it 7-1.
DAY 11 PREVIEW
It’s a blockbuster day ticket at the Australian Open as a historically dominant tournament from the top seeds creates a mouth-watering set of quarter-finals on Wednesday.
For the first time in 70 years down under, the top six seeds in both the men’s and women’s draws all advanced to the last eight.
That means all four quarter-finals being played at Melbourne Park today are top-10 showdowns including four of the top six women in the world.
There will be just one singles match played at night, with the women’s quarter-finals both played in the day to allow the winners maximum rest before their semi-final on Thursday.
World No.2 Iga Swiatek opens proceedings against former Australian Open finalist Elena Rybakina, with the Pole still trying to complete the career slam at a tournament where she has never even made the decider.
Then it’s an all-American showdown as Jessica Pegula, who ended great mate Madison Keys’ defence of her title in the fourth round, faces the in-form Amanda Anisimova – who made the last two slam finals.
A well-rested Novak Djokovic then battles top-five newcomer Lorenzo Musetti, with the 10-time Open champion not having played since Saturday due to his fourth round opponent Jakub Mensik withdrawing through injury.
However Djokovic does not get to play in his preferred night session.
Instead in the evening back-to-back champion Jannik Sinner looks to move one step closer to a third consecutive crown when he faces big-serving American Ben Shelton, in a rematch of last year’s semi-final won by Sinner in straight sets.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN DAY 11 ORDER OF PLAY
Men’s and Women’s Singles Quarter-Finals
Rod Laver Arena
Day session from 11:30am
[5] Elena Rybakina (KAZ) vs [2] Iga Swiatek (POL)
Not before 1pm
[6] Jessica Pegula (USA) vs [4] Amanda Anisimova (USA)
Not before 2:30pm
[5] Lorenzo Musetti (ITA) vs [4] Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Night session from 7pm
[8] Ben Shelton (USA) vs [2] Jannik Sinner (ITA)
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