Australian Open 2016: Results, Highlights, Wednesday Scores Recap from Melbourne
The rest of the men's and women's singles semifinal matchups were set on Day 10 at the 2016 Australian Open, which put some unexpected names in position to potentially win a Grand Slam.
Few were surprised that No. 2 Andy Murray managed to defeat No. 8 David Ferrer to reach yet another Australian Open semi; however, No. 13 Milos Raonic continued his somewhat unexpected run in Melbourne by knocking off No. 23 Gael Monfils.
Things were even wilder on the women's side, as No. 7 Angelique Kerber took down No. 14 Victoria Azarenka in what most would consider to be an upset despite the seeding. Also, unseeded Johanna Konta extended her magical run with a win over Zhang Shuai.
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With just four players remaining in each of the main draws, here is a look at how four more semifinalists came to be on Day 10 at the Australian Open.
Day 10 Men's Singles Scores
| Quarterfinal | (2) Andy Murray | (8) David Ferrer | 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3 |
| Quarterfinal | (13) Milos Raonic | (23) Gael Monfils | 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 |
Day 10 Women's Singles Scores
| Quarterfinal | (7) Angelique Kerber | (14) Victoria Azarenka | 6-3, 7-5 |
| Quarterfinal | Johanna Konta | Zhang Shuai | 6-4, 6-1 |
Murray Blows Past Ferrer
Murray entered the Australian Open as an overwhelming favorite to reach the final, and that sentiment grew when Raonic knocked out No. 4 Stan Wawrinka in the fourth round. Despite the pressure that comes with massive expectations, the 28-year-old Scot came through Wednesday.
The two-time Grand Slam winner pressed his way into the semifinals with a 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3 win over a crafty opponent in Ferrer.
While Ferrer doesn't possess the same physical tools as Murray, the diminutive Spaniard tested his movement and endurance by routinely keeping points alive.
As seen in this video courtesy of the Australian Open on Twitter, Murray was very much up to the task:
The Scot largely dictated play against Ferrer with 11 aces and 49 winners as opposed to just 23 winners for his opponent.
The performance was a strong one for Murray overall, and based on his comments following the match, he believes he is hitting his stride at the perfect time, per ATPWorldTour.com:
"It was a pretty brutal match. The start of the match wasn't so good—a lot of unforced errors. But in the middle of the second set and the third set we both started to play long points. It was pretty physical. I held up pretty good, I think.
[...]
I think today was probably the best match I played, especially in the second and third set. I started hitting the ball better from the back of the court. Start of the tournament was good. Obviously last few days have been tough and maybe hadn't played my best tennis and managed to get through.
"
With the victory over Ferrer, Murray is now just one win away from reaching his fifth career Australian Open final.
Considering the fact that he is 0-4 in Australian Open finals thus far, it would be easy for him to look ahead and focus on that rather than his semifinal clash with Raonic.
Based on how well the big Canadian is playing right now, any lapse in focus could well lead to a shock exit for Murray.
If he is as engaged and well-rounded as he was against Ferrer in the quarters, though, Murray still has to be viewed as the man to beat in the bottom part of the draw.
Kerber Shocks Azarenka
After plowing her way through the first four rounds of the tournament, Azarenka was favored to dispatch Kerber en route to the semifinals, but the No. 7 seed from Germany had other ideas.
In a stunning performance against a two-time Australian Open champion, Kerber prevailed 6-3, 7-5, despite being down 2-5 at one point in the second set.
The 28-year-old Kerber advanced to the first Australian Open semifinal of her career, and her third Grand Slam semifinal overall, with the win.
Kerber had never beaten Azarenka before Wednesday in six career tries, but she went into the match with a winning mindset, according to WTATennis.com: "I can't describe it in words. I was 0-6 before I came here on court, but I was just telling myself, 'Just play like you play on the practice courts and just go for it, and just believe that you can beat her.' I'm actually so, so happy that I beat her for the first time."
While Kerber has long been a Top 10 player, Azarenka is perhaps the most dominant player in women's tennis when healthy aside from Serena Williams.
Vika appeared to be nearly unstoppable for the first month of 2016, as evidenced by this listing of set results, courtesy of the New York Times' Christopher Clarey:
Azarenka had dropped just 11 games in four Australian Open matches entering the quarters, but she admitted that she didn't feel fully engaged against Kerber, per WTA Insider:
While Azarenka missed out on a golden opportunity, Kerber now has a chance to seize it, as she will be favored against Konta in her semifinal matchup.
The 24-year-old Brit has gone on a magical run since beating Venus Williams in the first round, and few could have anticipated it, since her previous best run at a Grand Slam was to the fourth round.
Konta has already beaten the odds in a big way by becoming one of the final four women remaining in the tournament, but due to Kerber's combination of experience, confidence and excellent form, it is tough to envision her falling short of the final.
Raonic Trounces Monfils
While Raonic's ranking has dropped significantly since reaching a high watermark of No. 4 in mid-2015, the Canadian has proved thus far at the Australian Open that his game is better than ever.
That was on full display when he knocked off Wawrinka in the fourth round, and it was apparent once again Wednesday when the No. 13 seed defeated No. 23 Gael Monfils 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach his first Australian Open semifinal and second Grand Slam semi overall.
While Raonic surprisingly lost the ace battle to his French opponent 14-10, he won 84 percent of his first-serve points and 62 percent of his second-serve points and fired 47 winners to 36 unforced errors.
In addition to that, Raonic converted 31 of his 46 attempts at the net, which is an area he has made significant strides in, according to Carole Bouchard of SI.com:
Although Raonic must advance deep into Grand Slams on a consistent basis in order to challenge for a spot among the elite in men's tennis, he has the tools to compete with anyone when he is on top of his game.
Per the Australian Open's Twitter account, Raonic feels as though he is now far better positioned to succeed in the semifinals than he was when he reached this point at Wimbledon in 2014:
Raonic has enjoyed a good amount of success against Murray over the years, as their head-to-head record is knotted at 3-3.
Murray has won their past two meetings, however, and he prevailed the only time they clashed at a Grand Slam way back at the 2012 U.S. Open.
There is no question that Raonic has come a long way since then, and beating a player of Murray's caliber at this stage of a major tournament could be the moment he needs to turn the corner once and for all as a top player.
Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.
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