MELBOURNE (Reuters) – French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova fought back from going a set behind to hand Jelena Ostapenko a 2-6 6-4 6-4 defeat and advance to the fourth round of the Australian Open on Friday.
The Czech, seeded number four, clawed her way back from a set and a break down midway through the second set to see off the 2017 French Open winner.
“Tody’s match was really tough, really difficult. I had to really dig deep to get this win,” said Krejcikova.
“I’m really pleased about it and also proud of myself. I’m never going to leave without a fight and I’m really happy that I’m able to show that on the court.”
Ostapenko won the opening set thanks to a pair of service breaks and Krejcikova looked to be exiting the tournament when her Latvian opponent opened up a 3-1 lead in the second set.
However, two breaks of serve saw Krejcikova level the match.
Krejcikova was then given a time violation for returning late to court ahead of the start of the decider, claiming she was delayed due to a broken necklace.
She settled herself to break Ostapenko’s serve in the first game of the final set, holding on to win and set up a fourth round meeting with Victoria Azarenka.
(Reporting by Michael Church in Hong Kong, Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
