Novak Djokovic and Simona Halep were given their sternest tests of the opening week at the year’s first major, but the top seeds on either draw were able to negate their way through to the round of 16 at the Australian Open with wins on Saturday, 19 January.
Men’s world number one Djokovic dropped a set for the first time in three rounds so far at Melbourne Park before getting past Canadian teenager Denis Shapovalov, while his female counterpart Halep was given a run for her money by veteran Venus Williams.
The wins for the top seeds came on a day which saw long-standing attendance records at the Australian Open broken.
Floodlight Frustration for Djoker
Djokovic extended his Grand Slam winning streak against left-handers with a 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 win over 19-year-old Shapovalov in the third round, but more vitally guaranteed his stay at the top of the world rankings come the end of the tournament. Second-ranked Rafael Nadal needed to win the title and hope Djokovic lost before the fourth round to reclaim the top spot.
The Serbian has now won 18 consecutive matches against lefties at majors since being beaten by Nadal in the 2014 French Open final. Djokovic’s overall record against left-handed players at majors now reads 32-11.
But victory didn’t come without concerns for the 31-year-old, who cut an unhappy figure when lights were turned on at the Rod Laver Arena at 5 pm local time, with the sun still shining brightly.
Djokovic went up to the umpire and then a tournament official too to ask what was going on.
“As I said on the court, I don’t remember having lights in the past years at 5 p.m. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe not. I just felt with such a low position of the sun, the lights being switched on at 5 pm was completely unnecessary. It was very bright. There was no reason for the lights.”Novak Djokovic
The answer Djokovic got was that television wanted them on.
“Whatever TV says, we have to respect I guess,” Djokovic said.
Beat Venus, Meet Serena
Simona Halep beat one Williams sister at the Australian Open to setup a meeting with the other.
The No. 1-seeded Halep, last year's runner-up at Melbourne Park, reeled off six consecutive games in one stretch and ended up beating Venus Williams 6-2, 6-3 in the third round.
Next for Halep is a showdown against 23-time major champion Serena Williams with a quarter-final berth at stake.
“It's going to be a bigger challenge. I am ready to face it,” said Halep after her win.
After two tough three-set tussles in Australia, Halep had a much easier time of things on Saturday and made only 12 unforced errors, while Venus made 33. Halep played with her left thigh taped, but moved around the court well.
For Venus, this is the fifth consecutive Grand Slam tournament she exits before the fourth round.
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