Simona Halep defeated one Williams sister at the Australian Open and now finds the other one standing in her way.
World number one Halep hit form in a 6-2 6-3 victory over Venus and will now take on Serena, who crushed a tearful Dayana Yastremska 6-2 6-1, in the fourth round.
Novak Djokovic dropped his first set of the tournament against Denis Shapovalov but recovered to win 6-3 6-4 4-6 6-0 while Naomi Osaka and Elina Svitolina both staged comebacks to make the last 16.
Tweet of the day
What a day at the Australian open. ❤😍👌👌 An amazing way to finish the Australian summer. Forever grateful🙏😇❤#ausopen pic.twitter.com/fqOiekjH3F
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) January 19, 2019
Stat of the day
Make that a Day/Night record of 93,178 👏
❤️ if you were lucky enough to join us on #CoopersSaturday.#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/ho7pQQxGLX
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2019
93,178 fans came through the doors of Melbourne Park, setting a new attendance record for the tournament by nearly 6,000 people.
And who are you?
Even @rogerfederer needs his accreditation 😂#AusOpen (via @Eurosport_UK)
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2019
He may be one of the most famous sports stars on the planet but even Roger Federer is not allowed into the men's locker room without his accreditation.
Asparagus Sascha
Getting to know Sascha Zverev in the gym 🏋️♂️😂
➡️ Known as "The Skinny Dude" on tour➡️ Has been called "Asparagus"➡️ Will never adopt the @RafaelNadal sleeveless#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/RqsdFhrx6O
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2019
Alexander Zverev is still filling out into his body and the 21-year-old German was going for the sympathy vote when asked about his physique following his victory over Alex Bolt.
Fallen seeds
Women: Elise Mertens (12), Wang Qiang (21), Hsieh Su-wei (28)
Men: Fabio Fognini (12), David Goffin (21), Denis Shapovalov (25)
Who's up next?
Federer and Rafael Nadal face different generational tests in the fourth round on Saturday. Nadal takes on his old rival Tomas Berdych, back refreshed following injury, while Federer meets flamboyant 20-year-old Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas. Maria Sharapova will look to follow up her big win over defending champion Caroline Wozniacki by defeating Australian hope Ashleigh Barty while 17-year-old Amanda Anisimova meets Petra Kvitova.
