Qualifier Yastremska ousts Azarenka to make Australian Open quarterfinals

Qualifier Dayana Yastremska

View Profile of Ukraine powered into the first Grand Slam quarterfinal of her career with a 7-6(6), 6-4 upset of two-time champion Victoria Azarenka

View Profile at the Australian Open on Monday.

The 23-year-old Yastremska fought off two set points in the first set and came back from a break down in the second set, gritting out a 2-hour and 7-minute victory over former World No.1 Azarenka on Rod Laver Arena.

"I played pretty aggressive, I think," Yastremska said. "In some moments I felt like I was too nervous and too emotional, but then I just relaxed and I said, like, 'It's going to be like it's going to be. Just try to play each ball.'"

With her career-best Grand Slam result achieved, Yastremska will go for more when she next takes on fellow first-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist Linda Noskova

View Profile of the Czech Republic, in their first meeting.

World No.50 Noskova advanced to her maiden major quarterfinal after an injured No.19 seed Elina Svitolina

View Profile retired from their match after only three games.

Qualifier reclaims form: Yastremska, who won three Hologic WTA Tour singles titles as a teenager, is the first qualifier to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal since Emma Raducanu

View Profile at the 2021 US Open. Famously, Raducanu went on to win that entire event.

At the Australian Open specifically, Yastremska is the first woman to make the singles quarterfinals since Zhang Shuai in 2016.

Currently ranked No.93, Yastremska just missed getting direct entry into the main draw, and she was the No.1 seed in qualifying. She did struggle through qualies, needing to go three sets in all three of her matches.

But once she hit the main draw, former World No.21 Yastremska exhibited some of her peak form right from the start. Yastremska stunned No.7 seed and reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova

View Profile 6-1, 6-2 in the first round, and she has taken that momentum all the way into her maiden major quarterfinal.

In Monday's clash, Yastremska hit 38 winners to Azarenka's 16. Yastremska also came to net 13 times and triumphed on 12 of those occasions.

Azarenka halted: Azarenka, who won consecutive titles in Melbourne in 2012 and 2013, had notched the 50th Australian Open match-win of her career in the previous round by defeating Jelena Ostapenko

View Profile . Only five players have amassed more Australian Open wins than Azarenka in the Open Era: Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis. 

However, Azarenka was unable to get past Yastremska on Monday, and their head-to-head is now level at two wins apiece. It is Azarenka's first loss in her five matches against players ranked outside the Top 50 this year.

Match moments: In the opening set, Azarenka's return depth helped her come back from 3-1 down to serve for the set at 5-4. However, Yastremska's fiery forehands kept her in good stead throughout the set, and she used that wing to break at love for 5-5.

Azarenka then held two set points on the Yastremska serve at 6-5. However, the two-time champion misfired on backhands on each of those occasions, and Yastremska eked into the tiebreak.

In the breaker, Yastremska slammed a forehand winner on the edge of the sideline to garner a set point at 7-6. The qualifier converted that chance with yet another forehand winner, squeaking out the one-set lead after a grueling 1 hour and 14 minutes.

Azarenka built a 3-0 lead in the second set, but Yastremska fought back once again, reeling off five games in a row to put her on the edge of victory. At 5-4, Yastremska, naturally, converted her first match point with one final unreturnable forehand.