Serena Williams suffered a massive upset in the third round of the Australian Open. The American player lost to Wang Qiang after more than two and a half hours of play.
Serena’s 56 Unforced Errors
The final result of this event was 2-1 for the Chinese player, by sets, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5, and was he revenge for a disastrous loss here just one year ago.
Back during the previous edition of the US Open Qiang lost 6-0, 6-1 to Serena, and was pretty much humiliated in that battle. But now, the roles were different.
Serena struggled throughout the entire contest, not being able to reach her usual rhythm and pace. She would often hurt herself with unforced errors, which she had 56 today. Williams wasn’t only giving away points, but also boosting the morale of the guest and frustrating herself, which in the contest like this has massive importance.
Though, the American had a chance to turn this one into her favor. Near the end of the second set, she came back and won that sequence via tiebreaker. In those moments, the entire crowd was behind her, and she no doubt had the edge over Qiang, who just lost the opportunity to eliminate her.
Yet, for unknown reasons, Serena continued to play like she used to do, with massive oscillations and choosing all the wrong shots and mistakes.
“I’m better than that,” she said after the match.
With 23 Grand Slam titles, her statement has logic, but simply today, a lot of things didn’t work for here, and she now has to wait another chance to take that 24th Grand Slam trophy.
Wozniacki Ends Her Magnificent Career
The 2018 Australian Open champion, Caroline Wozniacki, lost to Ons Jaber and officially retired from playing tennis. The former No.1 who holds the record for the longest period between recapturing the top spot on the WTA list (2012-2018), lost in three sets, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5.
This was her last match, and it saw lots of emotions for the Danish player who won 30 titles so far and had to retire due to medical reasons. She has an autoimmune disease – rheumatoid arthritis, which prevents her from playing at the highest possible level.
We at Sportige.com want to wish all the best for Caroline in her well-deserved retirement.