Down goes No. 1.
Iga Swiatek, the Women's Tennis Association's top player, suffered an upset loss to Linda Noskova in the third round of the Australian Open. The four-time grand slam winner lost 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
An EPIC performance
— wta (@WTA) January 20, 2024
Linda Noskova defeats World No.1 Swiatek in a three set thriller 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. She books her ticket into the fourth round! #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/WcXZW4uzkL
Noskova, 19, is seeking her first singles title. She's coming off one of her best tournament results. In a tune-up to the Australian Open, Noskova reached the semifinals of the Brisbane International in early January, where she lost to the No. 3 player in the world, Elena Rybakina.
Of the four tennis grand slams, including the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open, Swiatek has more losses at the Australian Open than anywhere else. She has one semifinal appearance (2022) and three Round of 16 exits.
She also struggled in the second round, needing a third-set comeback to beat Danielle Collins, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Swiatek's third-round loss is the earliest she's been bounced from the Australian since a second-round loss in straight sets to Camila Giorgi in 2019.
Per ESPNBet, the upset paves the way for the winner of a potential Sabalenka-Coco Gauff semifinal to win the year's first grand slam.
Gauff (+160) is the favorite, but Sabalenka (+200) is right behind. With Noskova's win, the top half of the bracket is wide open. The result was most beneficial to Qinwen Zheng (+700), who has the third-best odds of winning the tournament.
Next up for Noskova is a match with No. 19 Elina Svitolina with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!