Venus, Serena, Madison Keys advance to Australian Open quarterfinals
Don't count Venus Williams out just yet. At 34, the seven-time Grand Slam champion has advanced to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal since 2010.
Seeded 18th this year, Venus knocked off No. 6 Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 on Monday.
Asked what has inspired her during this run, Williams said, "Definitely my sister Serena, she's just the ultimate champion. And definitely a lot of inspiration from all my fans who have stayed behind me through thick and thin."
Venus will play 19-year-old American Madison Keys, who defeated fellow American Madison Brengle, 6-4, 6-2, in the round of 16. Keys was just 13 the last time Venus won a Grand Slam.
"I'm just really excited. It's a huge opportunity for me," Keys said. "I think Venus has helped the sport, especially the women's side with equal prize money. She was a huge part of that. Just watching her is inspirational."
With Serena Williams also winning a three-setter on Monday, there are three American women in the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam event for the first time in a decade. After dropping the first set, Serena rallied to beat Garbine Muguruza, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
If Venus and Serena advance again, they will face each other in the semifinal. Serena is looking for a record sixth Australian Open and her first since 2010. They have not played each other in a Grand Slam event since 2009, when Serena defeated Venus in the Wimbledon final.
The mens final eight features seven of the top eight seeds – the only one missing is Roger Federer.
No. 1 Novak Djokovic advanced with a straight-sets victory over Gilles Muller. He'll next face Milos Raonic, who needed five sets to knock off Feliciano Lopez on Monday.
Kei Nishikori defeated David Ferrer, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. He'll face defending champ Stan Wawrinka. Rafael Nadal will face Tomas Berdych as Nadal continues his return from injuries that kept him out of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open last year.
The eighth quarterfinalist is Australian teen Nick Kyrgios, who advanced Sunday in a thrilling come-from-behind win. Kyrgios trailed two sets to love and held off match-point in the fourth set before closing out a 5-7, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5), 8-6 win. Kyrgios will face Andy Murray in the quarterfinal.
In mens doubles, the dominate Bryan brothers were ousted in the third round with a 7-6, 6-3 loss to No. 14 seeds Dominic Inglot and Florin Mergea. This is the second year in a row that the six-time Australian Open champions were knocked out in the third round in Melbourne.
Legend Billie Jean King on the state of the sport:
