Australian Open: Kerber battles strong Hsieh into quarter-finals

Thanks to an energy performance Angelique Kerber made it into the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. The Kieler defeated a Su-Wei Hsieh, who played at times as unleashedly as she did, 4:6,7:5,6:2 and in 2018 she remains unconstrained.

From Ulrike Weinrich from Melbourne

After the victory of the will Kerber will face Madison Keys (No. 17) on Wednesday in her first major quarter-finals since September 2016. The US Open finalist, who will be coached by Dieter Kindlmann from Munich and former number one Lindsay Davenport, took Caroline Garcia (No. 8) out of the match 6-3,6-2 in the round of sixteen.

Kerber was the relief after the 13th century. Victory in the 13th. My opponent has played incredibly well. I’ve been running a lot, but she almost always had an answer,”she said, saying,” I just focused and thought point to point.

Four days after her 30th birthday. On the occasion of his 50th birthday, Kerber found no remedy for the unorthodox Hsieh, who had already eliminated former Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland/No. 26) in the previous round. The Taiwanese dictated many of the rallies in the Rod Laver Arena because Kerber wasn’t as aggressive as in the previous matches. For example, in her third round gala on Saturday against the Russian supertar Maria Sharapova (6:1,6:3).

Again and again, Hsieh, acting as if unleashed, took the tempo and scored points often with her crossed two-handed forehand. The not bad playing Kerber seemed to be visibly annoyed, although she had started with a break and meanwhile was leading 3:1. In the following, however, she gave up three games in a row. Hsieh had already been in the 2008 round of the 16th round of the Happy Slam, but had only entered the third round twice since then at major level.

The 32-year-old, once the world’s best double player, took the lead for the first time at 5-4. The two-time Grand Slam winner Kerber was able to fend off the first set point with a forehand winner, but shortly afterwards the world rankings 88th place went down. the kick-off round after 46 minutes – to the disappointment of the former number one with a net roller.

Kerber then did his utmost to bite into the game. She moved better, but Hsieh continued to make hardly any mistakes, ran almost every ball and inspired the spectators with some spectacular point wins. The Kieler, who was seeded to 21st position, was able to exploit her sixth break point in the second section for a 4:3 lead. With a shifty overhead ball, however, she immediately enabled Hsieh to equalize the score again. But Kerber stayed on and took the second set.

In the decisive round, Hsieh lost some ground while the tournament winner of 2016 dominated, and Kerber moved up 1-1 to 5-1. After 2:08 hours “Angie” transformed her third match point and gave her joy at the hard-fought success.

Kerber had sought seclusion the day before the match against Hsieh and completed her training session in the hall of the National Tennis Center, which is directly adjacent to the tournament grounds on Batman Avenue. The training session under the radar instead of on the presentation plate for fans and journalists also had the advantage that she was not constantly confronted with her new role – that of the tournament’s favourite,”but I also know how to hide it. And I really only think from match to match,”Kerber said recently.

The two-time winner of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix would also be guaranteed a return to the top ten in the semi-finals. Irrespective of the performance down under, Kerber still sees a lot of potential in working with her new coach Wim Fissette.”We’re just at the beginning,”said the left-handed woman who called the Belgian’s commitment a “right decision”:”I needed a new voice, I needed the change.”

Under Fissette, who replaced Torben Beltz at the end of last year, each unit is very intensive and structured,”I know what I want to improve. And we are working hard on that,”Angie stressed. With success: Your service, the greatest weakness in your portfolio of successes, has already reached a new level. Not least because of some changes in the movement sequence. Kerber, for example, no longer pulls the left leg up and is therefore less frontal than in the past,”My serve now feels safer,”she said. Against Sharapova, the two-time Major Winner won the point in 86 percent of the cases when the first came.

Kerber is the rediscovered appetite for her profession in the days of Melbourne. The eyes are beaming, she laughs a lot. And the former number one is not only convincing on the court, but also in her statements. I have matured – as a human being and a player “The process was particularly painful in her nightmare year of 2017. Kerber felt “empty, disoriented”. The 30-year-old has suffered – and has had a hard time trying to change her coach. That was the right decision.