Spain's Rafael Nadal laughs during an interview following his win over Britain's Cameron Norrie in their third round match a the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Feb. 13
A quick look at the Australian Open:
LOOKAHEAD TO MONDAY
Rafael Nadal will play Italian veteran Fabio Fognini for a place in the Australian Open quarterfinals on Day 8. Nadal has been bothered by back stiffness but has come through three rounds without dropping a set and is starting to feel OK. He’s aiming for a men’s record 21st major title. ATP Cup winners Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev could set up an all-Russian quarterfinal if they advance through the fourth round. Fourth-seeded Medvedev will take a 17-match winning streak into his match against Mackenzie McDonald. Rublev is playing Casper Ruud in the subsequent match on Margaret Court Arena. Top-ranked Ash Barty will continue her quest for a drought-breaking win for Australian women at the national championship when she takes on American Shelby Rogers in a night match. The last Australian woman to win the title was Chris O'Neil in 1978. Two other American women are involved in the fourth-round matchups: No. 22 Jennifer Brady is playing No. 28 Donna Vekic and Jessica Pegula is against fifth-seeded Elina Svitolina. No. 18 Elise Mertens takes on Karolina Muchova in the other match.
MONDAY'S FORECAST
Mostly sunny, high of 27 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit)
SUNDAY'S WEATHER
Cloud clearing to a sunny afternoon, high of 20 Celsius (81 Fahrenheit).
SUNDAY'S KEY RESULTS
Women’s Fourth Round: No. 2 Simona Halep beat No. 15 Iga Swiatek 3-6, 6-1, 6-4; No. 3 Naomi Osaka beat No. 14 Garbiñe Muguruza 4-6, 6-4, 7-5; No. 10 Serena Williams beat No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 2-6, 6-4; Hsieh Su-Wei beat No. 19 Marketa Vondrousova 6-4, 6-2.
Men’s Fourth Round: No. 18 Grigor Dimitrov beat No. 3 Dominic Thiem 6-4, 6-4, 6-0; No. 6 Alexander Zverev beat No. 23 Dusan Lajovic 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3; Aslan Karatsev beat No. 20 Felix Auger-Aliassime 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-4.
STAT OF THE DAY
25 — years since a man reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam on debut. Karatsev's fourth-round win made him the first to achieve that since Alex Radulescu at Wimbledon in 1996.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’ll be ready for anyone.” Karatsev, after beating a second seeded player in three days, on who he'd prefer to play in the Australian Open quarterfinals.
