MELBOURNE (AP) — Danielle Collins is back in the Australian Open quarterfinals after coming from behind to win 4-6, 6-4 6-4 over 19th-seeded Elise Mertens of Belgium on Monday.
The duel lasted nearly three hours in temperatures of just over 30 degrees Celsius (90 Fahrenheit) at Rod Laver Arena.
It is the first time Collins has come back from a set down to win back-to-back matches at a Grand Slam tournament.
The 28-year-old American also lost the first set in her third-round match against Clara Tauson.
The 27-year-old Collins was a semi-finalist at the 2018 Australian Open, which remains his best finish at a major.
A win in the next round over either Simona Halep or Alize Cornet would put Collins back in the top four round.
“Today has been very hard on my physical condition,” said Collins. “I played a long match the other day, two and a half hours, and then I played doubles, so I spent about five hours on court.
“I had to make a lot of technical adjustments to feel comfortable in the movements, especially with the serve.”
In the duels of the men’s branch, corresponding to the fourth round, Daniil Medvedev, monarch of the United States Open, was later measured with Maxime Cressy. Stefanos Tsitsipas (4th seed) collided with Taylor Fritz (20th) and US Open champion Marin Cilic faced Felix Auger-Aliassime (9th)