Dan Imhoff
Australian Open
A 44-minute New York nightmare is all but a distant memory for China’s Wang Qiang, with the 27th seed avenging defeat to Serena Williams in a third-round Australian Open boilover on Friday.
The 29-year-old prevailed 6-4 6-7(2) 7-5 on Rod Laver Arena to end the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s bid to tie Margaret Court’s all-time record at Melbourne Park in 2020.
Only four months ago, Wang scored a career-best win over Roland Garros champion Ashleigh Barty at Flushing Meadows before Williams trounced her in the last eight.
There she salvaged just one game – only 15 points total – in a brief but brutal outing on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Back on the big stage, Wang erased those memories, steadying after failing to serve out the match at 5-4 in the second set to book a maiden fourth-round berth at Melbourne Park.