The big story: Serena enters quarters without dropping set

Serena Williams on Monday reached the Australian Open quarter-final without dropping a set, keeping her hopes of a record 23rd Grand Slam title, PTI reported.

Serena overcame Barbora Strycova 7-5, 6-4 to set up a last-eight clash with Britain’s Johanna Konta.

The win came a day after defending champion and top seed Angelique Kerber fell by the wayside. Serena is hoping to win the title and end Kerber’s short reign as world No. 1.

Serena joined her sister Venus into the quarter-finals and staying on track for a possible all-Williams final.

“I have absolutely nothing to lose in this tournament,” said Williams, 35. “Everything here is a bonus for me. Obviously I’m here to win. Hopefully I can play better, I can only go better.”

Other top stories

Tennis

  • Rafael Nadal edged Gael Monfils 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 to enter the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on Monday. It will be Nadal’s first appearance in a Grand Slam quarter-final since the 2015 French Open.
  • Grigor Dimitrov defeated Denis Istomin to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals on Monday. The Bulgarian won 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-2, 6-1 in two hours and 25 minutes. Istomin had shocked Novak Djokovic in the second round.
  • David Goffin beat Dominic Thiem to become the first Belgian man to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals. Goffin won 5-7, 7-6(4), 6-2, 6-2 in two hours 44 minutes.
  • Third seed Milos Raonic progressed to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open after beating Bautista Agut 7-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1.
  • Mirjana Lucic-Baroni made her first Grand Slam quarter-final in 18 years, sweeping past American qualifier Jennifer Brady 6-4, 6-2 at the Australian Open. The unseeded Croat last got this far at a major tournament at Wimbledon in 1999, where she lost to Steffi Graf.
  • Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic beat Australia’s Daria Gavrilova 6-3, 6-3 to enter the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
  • India’s Leander Paes and his Swiss partner Martina Hingis beat Australia’s Casey Dellacqua and Matt Reid 6-2, 6-3 on Monday to progress to the quarter-finals of the mixed doubles of the Australian Open.
  • India’s Zeel Desai moved to the girls’ singles pre-quarterfinals of the Junior Australian Open on Monday, PTI reported. The 17-year-old defeated Germany’s Jule Niemeier 6-4, 6-2 in a second-round clash. 

Cricket

  • Wriddhiman Saha smashed an unbeaten century to take Rest of India within 113 runs of Gujarat’s 379-run target at the end of day four of the Irani Cup match at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Monday.   
  • The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the central government and sports federations asking why the recommendations of the Justice Lodha committee should not be implemented in other sporting bodies apart from cricket.
  • Indian spin duo Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been rested for the upcoming three-match Twenty20 series against England starting from January 26, the BCCI said on Monday. Spinner Amit Mishra and all-rounder Parvez Rasool have been called in as replacements.
  • New Zealand cruised to a comfortable nine-wicket win over Bangladesh in the second Test at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Monday.
  • AB de Villiers, who has not played an ODI for South Africa since June last year due to an elbow injury, returned to the side for the first three matches against Sri Lanka.
  • Australia have recalled opening batsman Aaron Finch and decided to rest in-form David Warner in a 14-man squad for the one-day series in New Zealand starting next week.
  • David Warner has won Australian cricket’s top individual prize for the second year in a row, edging skipper Steve Smith and paceman Mitchell Starc for the Allan Border Medal.
  • The Pakistan Blind Cricket Council on Monday said that a cricket team from India is likely to tour Pakistan later this year to play a one-day and T20 series, PTI reported.
  • Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh will lead the Punjab team in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy domestic T20 tournament which begins on January 29.
  • Former India cricketer Virender Sehwag has been named Indian Premier League franchise Kings XI Punjab’s Head of Cricket Operations and Strategy for the upcoming season, PTI reported.

Hockey

  • Pakistan Hockey Federation Secretary Shahbaz Ahmad on Monday said that Hockey India still wants a formal apology from the PHF over the 2014 Champions Trophy incident in Bhubaneswar when the visiting players had taken off their shirts and made obscene gestures at the crowd at the full-house stadium after winning the semi-final clash against India, PTI reported.
  • Australian Glenn Turner struck twice as Kalinga Lancers beat Ranchi Rays 4-2 in the Hockey India League on Monday.

Football

  • India’s national football team on Monday were drawn along side Macau, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar in Group A for final round of qualifiers for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
  • Hull City midfielder Ryan Mason fractured his skull during Sunday’s game at Chelsea. Mason clashed heads with Chelsea defender Gary Cahill early into the game and had to be stretchered off.
  • Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger on Monday was formally charged with misconduct by the Football Association for pushing fourth official Anthony Taylor during his side’s last-gasp 2-1 win against Burnley at the Emirates on Sunday. Wenger was sent to the stands after the altercation.