Linda Noskova beat Iga Swiatek in the third round of the Austalian Open to become the first teenager to defeat a World No 1 at the Australian Open since Amelie Mauresmo in 1999; she will now face Dayana Yastremska in her first Grand Slam quarter-final
Tuesday 23 January 2024 06:31, UK
Linda Noskova has caused a storm at the Australian Open by beating world No 1 Iga Swiatek and has now reached the quarter-finals on her maiden appearance in Melbourne.
Noskova provided the shock of the Grand Slam so far by knocking out favourite Swiatek and reached the last eight of the tournament when Elina Svitolina retired midway through the first set of their fourth-round contest.
The 19-year-old said she was "sad" for the clash to end how it did, saying she was "physically and mentally" up for the battle but wished Svitolina well in her recovery from a back injury.
So who is this new up-and-coming teenager making headlines in Melbourne, and what hopes are there she can go all the way?
Noskova is one of eight Czech players that make up the top 50 of the women's game. Despite having a vast amount of talent in her nation to look up to, such as Martina Navratilova, Petra Kvitová and Jana Novotná, It was 23-time champion Serena Williams who she idolised.
"When I was younger, I didn't really watch tennis as much as my parents or people that were around it a little more," Noskova said after reaching the quarter-finals.
"But I think when I got into it, I was a big fan of Serena. I always am and always probably will be. I like her style a lot and the way she carries herself and the person that she is. She's definitely on top of my charts."
In her thrilling run to the quarter-finals, she faced her compatriot Marie Bouzkova in the first round of the tournament, winning in straight sets. She then beat McCartney Kessler of the US to progress to the third round against Swiatek.
While this run is her best to date in her WTA professional career, she has shown promise from a young age.
She was the Roland Garros girls' champion in 2021, beating Erika Andreeva in the final and made her debut in the Grand Slam of Roland Garros the following year and took US Open Champion Emma Raducanu to three sets before falling to defeat.
Noskova was also nominated for the WTA's Most Improved player at the end of last season, after starting outside the top 100 to finish at No 41.
She made a huge impression at her first WTA final as a qualifier in Adelaide, beating Daria Kasatkina and Victoria Azarenka. She gained her first top 10 win over Ons Jabeur in the semi finals before falling defeat to Aryna Sabalenka in the final.
"I mean, you can feel that she isn't really afraid of us," Sabalenka said after the final.
"She just plays her game. No matter what, she just plays her game."
In what has been a breakthrough tournament for the young Czech, she will now face Ukrainian qualifier Dayana Yastremska in Tuesday's afternoon session.
Much like Noskova, Yastremska is causing tournament shocks after she won 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 against two-time champion Azarenka to progress into the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time.
On her path, Yastremska beat champion and seventh seed Marketa Vondrousova in her opening match, before a straight-sets win against an unseeded Varvara Gracheva and victory against 27th seed Emma Navarro in a deciding set.
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