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Former world number one Victoria Azarenka admits her back was against the wall in her Australian Open fourth-round match, before digging deep to beat China's Zhu Lin in three sets.
Key points:
- Azarenka won 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals
- She will play third seed Jessica Pegula in the last eight
- Azarenka says focusing on her own game is how she overcame Zhu
It was not until well after 2am AEDT that Azarenka was able to seal victory, coming from a set down to win 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 after two hours and 40 minutes on court inside Rod Laver Arena.
The two-time champion faces in-form third seed Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals. It is the sixth time she has reached this stage of the tournament.
Zhu — ranked 87 in the world — had defeated Greek sixth seed Maria Sakkari in the third round and she stormed out of the blocks against Azarenka by claiming the first set.
But Azarenka fought her way back into the match to keep her Australian Open tilt alive.
"It was a hell of a match. It was very physical. There were so many rallies," Azarenka told reporters at Melbourne Park.
"It was kind of tough for me to figure out how my opponent plays. I watched a little bit her playing before, but today I felt like the bullets were coming from every angle: on the run, off the run, on the line, touching the net.
"I felt like everything was going in. It was a bit frustrating for me, I'm not going to lie. I probably didn't show it, but I was a bit upset because [I was thinking] when is it going to turn my way?
"At one point I had to tell myself a little bit [to] stop thinking [about] what she's doing and really focus on myself, what I can do, what I can control.
"I can't control her making winners, I can't control her hitting lines or playing amazing tennis."
Azarenka said the key to overcoming Zhu was to stay patient and concentrate on her own game.
"I was like, 'OK, I just need to — step by step — focus on myself, execute better'," she said.
"In the second set, I was playing better. Third set, [the] momentum shifts [were] going crazy. But I'm so happy that I was able to turn this around."
Azarenka wants 'new memories'
While Pegula is firming as the favourite to lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup among those left in the women's draw, Belarusian Azarenka is not discounting her own chances.
The 33-year-old knows what it takes to win a major, having claimed back-to-back Australian Opens in 2012 and 2013.
But Azarenka — now ranked 24 in the world — said she would not be looking to her past glories for inspiration against Pegula.
"I don't really look back and think about what I have done. I just try to really create new memories," she said.
"I'm not the person who looks back, either regrets or is happy about the past. I do live in the moment. Sometimes too much in the future, being too hopeful. It's not bringing back the wins.
"I always say that you only remember the good things, you don't remember the bad things about your wins. There were tough roads both times.
"I try to create new memories. I need space for new memories."