World No.1 Iga SWIATEK becomes latest big name to fall at 2024 Australian Open after incredible display from rising Czech Linda NOSKOVA

Saturday, 20 January 2024 at 11:36

The biggest upset of the 2024 Australian Open so far has been completed as World No.1 Iga Swiatek joins Elena Rybakina, Ons Jabeur and Jessica Pegula in all falling at the 2024 Australian Open as 19-year-old Linda Noskova continues to shine with an epic 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over one of the tournament favourites.

Swiatek looked shaky against Danielle Collins having to rally from the brink to defeat the retiring American so perhaps this could've been seen coming. But it is mere application and many of the top players who have early scares tend to bounce back and perform even better but this wasn't the case as Noskova who reached the latter stages in Brisbane and made her name for herself initially last year in Adelaide continues to revel in the Aussie conditions.

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Noskova is the third highest ranked teenager on the WTA Tour and showed why she has so much promise. She applied pressure from the first set but Swiatek weathered the initial storm to go 6-3 up and looked good to start despite Noskova coming at her.

The second set saw the first break point coming in the fifth set for the World No.1, but she failed to convert and Noskova took the front with her superb hitting. Swiatek failed to get it done in the next return game on break point and Noskova won 11 consecutive points to win the second set 6-3. In the deciding set, the Czech ace got off to the better start breaking in the third game albeit Swiatek broke back to level the score.

However, Noskova hit straight back. This time she didn't give it back as she served it out from there for a seismic shock and sends Aryna Sabalenka into being the out and out favourite by a mile to retain her title next weekend with one of her biggest challengers now gone.

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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