Australian Open 2018 Results: Thursday Bracket Winners, Scores and Top Stats
Marin Cilic brought an emphatic end to Kyle Edmund's Australian Open dream on Thursday, as he coasted into the final with a 6-2, 7-6(4), 6-2 win.
Edmund, playing in a Grand Slam semi-final for the first time, appeared a little jaded at Rod Laver Arena, allowing Cilic to dictate much of the match with his serve and thunderous groundstrokes. The sixth seed will face either Chung Hyeon or defending champion Roger Federer in Sunday's final.
In the women's bracket the top two seeds will contest the climax on Saturday, as Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki both emerged victorious in gripping semi-final matches on Thursday.
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Here are the results in full from Thursday's action and a look back at yet another dramatic day Down Under.
Thursday Results
Men's Draw
(6) Marin Cilic bt. Kyle Edmund: 6-2 7-6(4) 6-2
Women's Draw
(1) Simona Halep bt. (21) Angelique Kerber: 6-3 4-6 9-7
(2) Caroline Wozniacki bt. Elise Mertens: 6-3 7-6(2)
Thursday Recap
Having dispatched of third seed Grigor Dimitrov so impressively in the quarter-finals, Edmund would've been confident of keeping his remarkable run going against Cilic in the semis.
The Brit would've been buoyed by two break points in the opening game, even though Cilic saved them. However, that was about as close as Edmund got to unsettling his opponent's serve throughout the match.
Cilic, a former U.S. Open champion, looked much more at home on court. A break to go 4-2 in front for the Croat gave him more confidence, and he rattled through the remaining games to take the set. Here's how he did it, per Eurosport UK:
The second was a much tighter affair, in which Edmund appeared to be more at ease in the semi-final. The Brit was more secure on serve although unable to make any dent in his opponent's.
In the tiebreak, it was a familiar theme until Cilic produced some brilliant strokes to grab a mini-break and move ahead. Stuart Fraser of The Times outlined the size of the task facing Edmund at this stage:
Meanwhile, the tournament's Twitter account calculated the chances of an improbable comeback for the underdog:
Those chances would've shortened when Cilic broke early in the third and throughout the stanza he was all over the Edmund serve. He grabbed another to go 5-2 in front, before putting the gloss on an excellent semi-final display.
Earlier in the day, Halep and Kerber played out one of the matches of the tournament, with the former saving two match points before going on to book her spot in the final.
In a gripping third set, both players missed the chance to serve for the match, as they each felt the pressure. But eventually, Halep found a way through against the former champion, playing some brilliant points in the 16th game of an incredible third set.
As noted by the WTA Tennis Twitter account, Halep had to be at her very best to get the better of Kerber:
It will give Halep the chance to win her first Grand Slam title and preserve her spot at the top of the WTA rankings. However, the same incentives are on offer for her opponent on Saturday.
Wozniacki's route to the final wasn't so dramatic, as she was relatively comfortable throughout against Mertens.
The second seed, like Halep, has enjoyed tournament wins and a spell as world No. 1, but she's never been able to get over the line in a Grand Slam despite two final appearances.
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