The Australian Open schedule is into the fourth round and the start time and channel for the matches is on ESPN and the Tennis Channel early with coverage and live from 9 pm on ESPN2 and things are picking up now after a number of top players on the women's side have fallen, including Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams and now Victoria Azarenka has the chance to win her second grand slam in Melbourne in a row.
Serena Williams lost to Ana Ivanovic in three sets to snap a 25-match winning streak and now two former champions are now out of the bracket and overall, Americans are out of luck down under. Williams tried to power through an injury to win, but Ivanovic did not break down as she had done in the past and pushed back and she was able to win out on through the fourth round match. The score ended up being 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to put Williams down and now Ivanovic has put herself in a good position with a solid draw and she could make a surprise run to the finals.
The win at the Australian Open would have have been the sixth title for Williams and her 18th overall and now the 14th seed in Ivanovic is through to the fifth round. Williams came in as the number one seed after losing just four matches last season and also taking the Brisbane Title this year and she won 78 matches last year and now has the chance to rebound next time she's out. Williams has had a rough couple years at the tournament down in Melbourne, as she has lost just two matches at the Australian Open in her entire career after winning the first set, both coming the last two years against Sloane Stephens and also with Ivanovic.
Maria Sharapova is now out of things as well after she lost in an upset in the fourth round 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 to Dominika Cibulkova and now Azarenka is the top ranked player left. The defending champion won over Sloane Stephens and now she is through, while Li Na is still alive. On the men's side, Rafael Nadal was able to muscle through a foot injury to win, while Roger Federer and Andy Murray look like they are going to matchup. The ESPN coverage has been love daily and the fourth round and next round coverage are coming up on Monday and Tuesday.
Check here for the schedule from ESPN for the Australian Open.