Dominika Cibulkova advances to QFs into Australian Open 2015

Dominika Cibulkova wins a cracker of a last 16 match to beat the twice former champion Victoria Azarenka, 6-2 3-6 6-3.

Good things come to those who wait. And Dominika Cibulkova has been waiting a year to come back to Rod Laver Arena, to the court that propelled her 161 centimetres from being recognisable to global. Australian Open 2015 has also been waiting. For a quality women’s match to do for women’s tennis what Nick Kyrgios and Andy Murray did for men’s tennis on Sunday night. In Cibulkova and Victoria Azarenka, they got it. The two players arrived at this first Grand Slam of the year in similar circumstances. Azarenka, twice a champion, was unseeded for the first time at a Slam since 2007 having spent much of last year on an injury hiatus. While Cibulkova, whose pocket rocket tennis took everyone aback here 12 months ago, had won just six out of 18 matches since Wimbledon. But it seems familiar turf can bring out the best in a player, no matter their pre-match pedigree. Nick Kyrgios would agree. And so it was that the two Europeans contested a blistering display of 76 winners that cleaned up the court, Cibulkova winning with a cross between a shriek, a yell and a shout, 6-2 3-6 6-3. 

 “I just walk on the court and all these great memories came to my mind,” she beamed, threatening to burst with the elation of it all.
 “Today was extremely, extremely good match from my side. 
I would say it was a high level of tennis. The first set, the way I played, was just really, really – no mistakes. I was going for my shots and I was just doing the right things.”