Keys falls to Zhang Shuai at Australian Open

With China’s Zhang Shuai making it to the Australian Open quarter-finals, all eyes are on the 27-year-old tennis player who had until now been a perennial Grand Slam loser.

“I think Shuai Zhang is actually on a bit more of an incredible journey than myself as she won her first main draw match at a slam and I think that’s an incredibly special moment”, Konta said. You don’t know what’s going to happen. “Maybe two points you’re feeling like you can not play, and then the next three balls, pong, pong, pong, you make two aces, one victor”.

“I just wanted to show the best of Zhang Shuai in this match”, she said. “So proud of me, so excited and happy”. I want to try my best.

“Yeah, so many girlfriends come to hug me, they’re so proud of me, so excited and happy”, she said.

Play is under way in bright sunshine on the eighth day at Melbourne Park which features the final group of fourth-round matches that will determine singles quarterfinalists.

She later said she kept playing because “One, I hate retiring”. It ultimately proved too much and Zhang raced to the win to continue her remarkable run, as Keys left the court sobbing.

That opening came in the most unlikely of circumstances, when Zhang was drawn to play the world number two Simona Halep in the first round, having grafted through qualifying as the world’s 133rd-ranked player.

She is only the fourth Chinese woman to make the last eight at a grand slam and her run in Melbourne has been particularly surprising given she had contemplated giving up tennis after failing to progress beyond the first round of 14 successive majors dating back to 2008.

Like Zhang, Konta eliminated a seed in the first round, beating Venus Williams.

Keys limped to her changeover chair, understandably frustrated, but this time did not call a trainer. And given her physical state, it would have been a very human reaction to skip out on her press obligations. “Now, I’ve had to tell lots of Chinese media to keep calm, please don’t give her any extra pressure”.

Kerber booked her spot into her first Australian Open quarterfinal with a 6-4, 6-0 win over compatriot Annika Beck. Asked why she didn’t retire, her answer was short and simple: “One, I hate retiring”.

“I’ve already played seven matches”.

In the other quarter, Milos Raonic persevered with his serve-and-volley game plan and withstood a strong comeback from 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka, advancing to the quarterfinals 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-3.

At the start of the third set, she broke Zhang to take a 2-1 lead.