Published 11:48 IST, January 24th 2020
Serena Williams knocked out of Australian Open; Historic 24th title delayed
The American lost to China's Qiang Wang in a three-set match on Friday, ending hopes of another Grand Slam title to her name
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In a major upset in the Australian Open Women's category, Serena Williams has been knocked out of the tournament after a three-set loss to Wang Qiang 6-4 6-7(2) 7-5.
Williams was close to being knocked in the first-second set itself and was one service game away from the exit. However, she broke Qiang to level the set and later the match in the tiebreaker.
The moment of a LIFETIME!
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2020
Qiang Wang puts on an absolute masterclass in the match of the tournament to shock Serena Williams 6-4 6-7(2) 7-5 and advance to a first career #AusOpen round of 16.#AO2020 pic.twitter.com/gnGkAMaU8X
The two-player had met last year at the US Open and Williams had demolished the Chinese player in straight sets.
The loss means that her run to claim 24 singles titles will have to wait. Williams owns seven trophies from the year's first major championship and this was her earliest defeat there since bowing out in the third round all the way back in 2006.
The Tennis star has been having issues with form and consistency and admitted to the same during her press conference after the second-round match.
Williams said, "I made so many errors in a row and had to battle through my own internal problems. I knew I had to play better and couldn't keep making unforced errors like that, otherwise it was going to be a long evening for me."
She survived the first tew rounds but fell short on Friday afternoon at Melbourne Park. Qiang, on the other hand, was delighted with the win but was not cautious of being grounded. During the on-court interview, she was asked if she would be celebrating and said that she wouldn't.
In the interview, Qiang said, "Yes I think my team always believed I can do it. You know after last time I do really hard work on court and off the court so I think it’s really good work, yes, I believe I can do it. I don’t know, during the second set I was a little bit confused because I lost the second set. I have to be calm, yes..my mind always told me I had to focus on court and trust myself (sic).”
11:48 IST, January 24th 2020