Caroline Wozniacki overcame nerves in a tremendous battle with Simona Halep to win her first grand slam title at the Australian Open.
Both players had lost their first two slam finals, while the world number one ranking was also on the line, and it was Wozniacki who hit the jackpot with a 7-6 (7/2) 3-6 6-4 victory.
The Dane led 2-0 and 3-1 in the deciding set before Halep fought back to lead by a break at 4-3 but Wozniacki refused to let he dream slip away.
Tweet of the day
Congratulations @CaroWozniacki – welcome to the Club.
— Rod Laver (@rodlaver) January 27, 2018
Picture of the day
Like father, like son!@SebiKorda with the signature scissor-kick made famous by his dad Petr.#AusOpen @Kia_Motors #KiaTennis pic.twitter.com/IRF0FAJ07X
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 27, 2018
Twenty years after Petr Korda won his only grand slam title at the Australian Open, his 17-year-old son Sebastian lifted the junior title with a 7-6 (8/6) 6-4 victory over Tseng Chun Hsin. Remarkably, Sebastian is the third Korda to win an Australian Open title, with his older sister Jessica claiming the golf equivalent in 2012. Sebastian celebrated with Petr’s trademark hitch kick and revealed he uses his dad’s success as inspiration. The teenager said: “I’ve seen his match on YouTube a lot. I watch it at least maybe once a month. A little bit of motivation.”
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Sunday highlights
There would be nothing surprising should he prevail on Sunday, with the 36-year-old arriving in Melbourne as the favourite and cruising through the draw without dropping a set.
Cilic will play in his third slam final after winning the US Open in 2014 and losing at Wimbledon six months ago to Federer in a match that saw him struggle with blisters and break down in tears.
