Wozniacki reaches Australian Open quarterfinals

Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark on Sunday thrashed Slovakia's Magdalena Rybarikova 6-3, 6-0 to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.

Wozniacki, a former world No. 1, had not reached the last-8 round since 2012 when she lost to now retired Kim Clijsters of Belgium, reports Efe.

"Six years ago. It's so long ago. All I can say is that I think I'm in a good place, I think I'm hitting the ball well and everything's been going well in the last year-and-a-half. It's been good," Wozniacki said after the win.

Second seed Wozniacki, who has yet to win a Grand Slam title, recovered from a slow start as she saw her serve broken early in the first set.

The 27-year-old Wozniacki faced no more break points during the match that lasted for 63 minutes while she seized on five out of nine break points Rybarikova presented her.

Wozniacki will take on Spaniard Carla Suarez, who had to rally from a set down to prevail over Anett Kontaveit of Estonia 4-6, 6-4, 8-6 for a place in the semifinal.

While trailing 4-6, 1-4 against Kontaveit, Suarez had to dig deep, winning five games in a row to draw level.

Two breaks in the third set were enough for Suarez to seal the victory after two hours and 17 minutes.

--IANS

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