Dolgopolov shocks Soderling

Unheralded Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov produced the Australian Open’s biggest upset Monday when he shocked fourth seed Robin Soderling in five sets to reach the quarter-finals on debut.

The 46th-ranked Ukrainian recovered from a set down to stun the Swede in the fourth round and reach the last eight in just his fourth appearance at a major.

Soderling had shaped as one of the men to beat here and cruised through the first set in just 21 minutes on the back of his powerful serve.

The Swede’s serve had been broken just once in the first three rounds, but the 22-year-old Dolgopolov stormed back into the match with successive breaks in the second set to level the match.

The rot continued in the third set for Soderling, as he won just one game. The Swede grew increasingly frustrated as he struggled to find a way to combat Dolgopolov’s court coverage and bold groundstrokes.

AFP