24 January,2017 10:30 AM IST | | PA Sport
Serena Williams will be walking out for her 47th grand slam quarter-final while Konta will be playing her second, and the American is also gunning for an Open era record 23rd major title
Melbourne: Serena Williams insists she has nothing to lose when she takes on Britain's Johanna Konta at the Australian Open. Williams will be walking out for her 47th grand slam quarter-final while Konta will be playing her second, and the American is also gunning for an Open era record 23rd major title.
One more triumph would pull Williams clear of Steffi Graf and one short of Margaret Court in the all-time list. It would also see her reclaim the World No. 1 ranking after the current incumbent Angelique Kerber was beaten in the fourth round in Melbourne by Coco Vandeweghe on Sunday. Williams moved one step closer with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over 16th seed Barbora Strycova and now faces Konta, the in-form British number one, for a place in the last four. "I have absolutely nothing to lose in this tournament. Everything here is a bonus for me. Obviously, I'm here to win. Hopefully, I can play better. I can only become better," Williams said.
Williams chose not to play another match last year after the US Open in September, deciding instead to recover from niggling injuries and recuperate.
Williams, the favourite
Into the quarter-finals, however, and without dropping a set, Williams is now the clear favourite to collect a seventh Australian Open title. She has never played Konta but is aware of her opponent's remarkable rise, the Briton chasing her 10th consecutive victory after winning the Sydney International a fortnight ago. "I have watched her game a lot. She's been doing really well. She has a very attacking game. I know her game pretty well and I look forward to it," Williams added.
âSerena can be defeated'
Konta's new coach Wim Fissette has guided all four of his previous charges to victories over Williams, and claims he knows how to make the Briton his fifth. Under Fissette, Kim Clijsters ousted Williams en route to winning the US Open in 2009, Sabine Lisicki beat her at Wimbledon in 2013, Simona Halep conceded just two games when she won at the WTA Championships in 2014 and last year, Victoria Azarenka overcame the American in the final at Indian Wells. "The most important thing is to really make my players feel they can beat her, that she is not unbeatable, because she is not," he said.
Quarter-final fixtures
Women's Singles
