Casey Dellacqua has advanced to the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time after downing China's Jie Zheng 6-2, 6-4.
Casey Dellacqua hits a winner in her win today. Source: Getty Images
EVERY tennis player who has endured their own heat hell at the Australian Open this week will think Australian Casey Dellacqua is crazy.
Dellacqua was only half joking when she declared she's peeved that a cool change has swept across Melbourne Park.
The 28-year-old West Australian would prefer the hotter the better when she plays Canadian teenager Eugenie Bouchard tomorrow for a place in what would be her first Open quarter-final.
The Aussie late bloomer defied the stifling conditions and her lowly 120 ranking to crush Jie Zheng of China 6-2 6-4 in their third round match on sunbaked Rod Laver Arena.
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She will now meet Eugenie Bouchard - a seeded teenager from Canada - on Sunday with a place in the quarter-finals up for grabs.
Women's No.1 seed Serena Williams joined Angelique Kerber in the fourth round of the Australian Open after both cruised to straight set victories.
Dellacqua firmly believes her best is still ahead after a career cruelly interrupted by left shoulder surgery in February 2009 and a right foot operation in August 2010.
"I didn't know if I would ever be back in the fourth round of the Australian Open or any grand slam. It feels awesome,'' Dellacqua said.
And those bitter memories of the tough times in the two comebacks has built more steel into Dellacqua's normally sunny disposition.
She admitted to being heartened by the sight of Zheng lying prone beside her courtside chair getting treatment for heat exhaustion at a critical stage of the second set.
"When I saw her laying down, I thought, okay, she's struggling, this is good. I mean, that's what you kind of want to see with your opponents,'' Dellacqua said.
Australia's Casey Dellacqua celebrates after victory in her women's singles match against China's Zheng Jie. Source: AFP
"You're always looking on the other side of the court to see even if they're getting angry. That's what you look for. You kind of feel like, hey, I've got them.
"But, yeah, the heat was great. I love it. It makes my body feel good, too. Yeah, it would be nice if it would be a bit hotter for the next week. I'm sure everyone else will be over it.''
Dellacqua, who described herself as solar-powered after her second round victory, said: "I just grew up in this weather. I grew up in Perth. We had summers like this all the time.
"So I totally understand there is a point where it gets ridiculous. Like yesterday, obviously it was just too hot to play. For doubles matches, probably fine, but for singles it does take it out of you. I just guess I'm lucky that I've acclimatized to it. If you spent a couple months, I think you'd be all right, too.''
Dellacqua was aggressive from the opening point and took the attack to the Chinese player, mixing up the rallies with topspin and slice to prevent her opponent slipping into her normal rhythm. And she defended soundly when under pressure with looping balls to scramble back into a court position that enabled her to stay in a rally.
Two-time Australian Open finalist and Fox Sports tennis commentator, Pat Cash, has laballed the Australian Open fans as out of control.
She was well on the way to victory with another service break in the opening game of the second set. And dropping her own serve in the next game was a temporary setback.
Maintaining the attacking theme, the Aussie left-hander clinched another service break in the fifth game with a rifled backhand down the line.
Zheng took the injury timeout at the change of ends with Dellacqua leading 4-3. And the delay shook the Australian's concentration as a double fault and wild forehand allowed Zheng to draw level at 4-4.
"When I lost the game at 4-3, I was like, no, you got to switch back on, really knuckle down here. I know she's struggling, but I didn't want to be like too excited. I was trying to force it a bit. I took my time, relaxed,'' she said.
Determined Dellacqua wasn't going to be denied and she prompted smashed aside Zheng's serve in the next game and comfortably closed out the match.
The gritty left-hander has more than justified the place in the women's draw that she won fair and square in the Australian wildcard play-off on Melbourne Park's back courts late last month.
On facing 19-year-old Bouchard, a rising star already with a 31st ranking, Dellacqua's resolve was clear as she replied: "I guess I'll leave it all on the line. My body feels great.''
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