MELBOURNE: Alexander Zverev served up a huge shock at the Australian Open on Wednesday by stunning second seed Carlos Alcaraz to make the semi-finals after third seed Daniil Medvedev fought hard to avoid an upset at the hands of Hubert Hurkacz.
Ukrainian qualifier Dayana Yastremska and Chinese 12th seed Zheng Qinwen earlier progressed to the last four of a Grand Slam for the first time after contrasting victories from a wide open section of the women’s draw.
Zverev was near-flawless on his delivery early in the clash on Rod Laver Arena and the sixth seed took advantage of mistakes from the racket of Alcaraz to lay the foundation for a 6-1 6-3 6-7(2) 6-4 victory.
Two years on from Rafa Nadal’s “Miracle of Melbourne” when the Spaniard battled from two sets down to beat Medvedev in the final, his 20-year-old compatriot came to life by edging the third set but there would be no escape for Alcaraz. (Reuters)
