By the time we reach the second week of a Grand Slam, I find myself inevitably asking: “Well, how the hell did we get here?” Obviously, the answer is in the upsets…or lack thereof. The 2014 Australian Open has featured its share of surprises, most notably Ana Ivanovic’s fourth-round defeat of #1-seed Serena Williams, not to mention Eric Butorac and Raven Klaasen’s defeat of #1-seeds Bob and Mike Bryan in the 3rd-round.
That said, we’re still on pace to see very familiar faces hoisting and gnawing on trophies by week’s end. The top four seeds are still in play with the Men’s draw, and Victoria Azarenka is in great position to win her 3rd consecutive title in Melbourne. Reigning US Open Doubles Champions Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek are still in the hunt, as is one-half of the reigning US Open Womens Doubles Champions Andrea Hlavackova (with Lucie Safarova in Melbourne)…though she could face the #1 doubles team in the world, Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci in the final.
Let’s take a look at some of the upsets that’ve have taken us to this year’s Australian Open Quarterfinals…
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Quarterfinals (Men)
- [1] Rafael Nadal vs. [22] Grigor Dimitrov
- [4] Andy Murray vs. [6] Roger Federer
- [7] Tomas Berdych vs. [3] David Ferrer
- [8] Stanislas Wawrinka vs. [2] Novak Djokovic
With the fellas, you’ll notice the only anomoly is Grigor Dimitrov. The 5-seed, Juan Martin del Potro was defeated in the second round by Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, who would then go on to defeat Benoit Paire in the third-round and fall to Grigor Dimitrov in the 4th.
Round-2 Upsets:
- Roberto Bautista Agut def. [5] Juan Martin del Potro 4-6, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
- Donald Young def. [24] Andreas Seppi 6-4, 2-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 – Donald would then go one to lose to Kei Nishikori in the 3rd round
- Sam Querrey def. [23] Ernests Gulbis 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 – Sam would lose to Fabio Fognini in the 3rd round
Round-3 Upsets:
- Roberto Bautista Agut def. [27] Benoit Paire 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 – He’d lose to Grigor Dimitrov in the 4th round
- [17] Tommy Robredo def. [9] Richard Gasquet 2-6, 7-5, 6-4, 7-6(6) – Tommy would go-on to lose to Stanislas Wawrinka in the 4th round
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Quarterfinals (Ladies)
- [14] Ana Ivanovic vs. [30] Eugenie Bouchard
- [4] Na Li vs. [28] Flavia Pennetta
- [11] Simona Halep vs. [20] Dominika Cibulkova
- [5] Agnieszka Radwanska vs. [2] Victoria Azarenka
The ladies are all over the place. Serena’s gone. Sharapopva’s out. The #6 and #7 seeds both lost in the first round. The hottest player Down Under for the third straight season is Victoria Azarenka, though she’ll have to get by a surging Agnieszka Radwanska to reach the semifinals. They’ve played 15 times, Radwanska’s only won three of those matches. In fact, Vika has won seven of their last eight. You have to go back to the 2011 Tokyo semifinals to find Radwanska’s last win over Azarenka.
Round-1 Upsets:
- Luksika Kumkhum def. [6] Petra Kvitova 6-2, 1-6, 6-4
- Julia Georges def. [7] Sara Errani 6-3, 6-2
Round-3 Upset:
- Garbine Muguruza def. [10] Caroline Wozniacki 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 – She would go on to lose to Agnieszka Radwanska in the 4th round
Round-4 Upsets:
- [14] Ana Ivanovic def. [1] Serena Williams 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
- [20] Dominika Cibulkova def. [3] Maria Sharapova 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
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Quarterfinals (Men’s Doubles)
- Eric Butorac and Raven Klaasesn vs. [12] Treat Huey and Dominic Inglot
- Alex Bolt and Andrew Whittington vs. [8] Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic
- Max Mirnyi and Mikhail Youzhny vs. [14] Lukasz Kubot and Robert Lindstedt
- [5] Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek vs. [13] Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut
Men’s Doubles…this is where the 2014 upsets have been hot and heavy. Thrillingly, for the Aussies, unseeded Alex Bolt and Andrew Whittington are still alive, with their most notable win over the #3-seeds and the reigning Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Doubles Champions in the second round. They certainly have their work cut out for them now, facing doubles vets Nestor and Zimonjic in the Quarterfinals. Plenty of teams from the 2013 World Tour Finals have fallen, including Bob and Mike Bryan, Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares, and Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo…
Round-2 Upset:
- Australians Alex Bolt and Andrew Whittington def. [3] David Marrero and Fernando Verdasco 7-6(4), 6-3
Round-3 Upsets:
- Eric Butorac and Raven Klaasen def [1] Bob and Mike Bryan 7-6(9), 6-4 – Bob and Mike Bryan reached the final nine of the last 10 years. They haven’t lost before the quarterfinals since 2003. Raven and Eric have only played together for four months.
- [13] Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut def. [2] Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares 7-6(4), 6-4
- [14] Lukasz Kubot and Robert Lindstedt def. [4] Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo 5-7, 6-4, 6-4
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Quarterfinals (Women’s Doubles)
- [1] Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci vs. [6] Cara Black and Sania Mirza
- [4] Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik vs. Jarmila Gajdosova and Ajla Tomljanovic
- [7] Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Safarova vs. [3] Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina
- [8] Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears vs. Shahar Peer and Silvia Soler-Espinosa
With the exception of two notable upsets in the second round, the Women’s Doubles draw has been “par for the course.” It also features two of the three remaining Americans still active in Melbourne: Rachel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears. Eric Butorac from Minnesota is the only other American left in the field, after his win over the Bryan Brothers with partner Raven Klaasen from South Africa. Raven is a former Springfield Laser in World Team Tennis…
Round-2 Upsets:
- Shahar Peer and Silvia Soler-Espinosa def. [2] Su-Wei Hseieh and Shuai Peng 7-5, 3-6, 6-4
- Timea Babos and Petra Martic def. [5] Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua (2013 US Open Finalists)
