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Muguruza crashes out as Azarenka advances at Australian Open

Garbine Muguruza was the most high-profile casualty in the women's draw on Satutrday at the Australian Open. The third seeded Spaniard lost in straight sets to the Czech veteran Barbora Strycova.

Third seed Garbine Muguruza was one of the favourites for the Australian Open title.
Third seed Garbine Muguruza was one of the favourites for the Australian Open title. Reuters/Jason Reed
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It finished 63 62 and ended the 22-year-old's bid to reach the last 16 for a third consecutive year in Melbourne. It was all the more remarkable as Strycova has only once ventured past the third round once in 38 grand slam tournaments. That foray into the second week came at Wimbledon in 2014 where she made the quarter-finals.

"Clearly not my best, for sure," said Muguruza. "I think today is a very bad day at the office."

"I think Barbora played good tennis," she added. "Also, I didn't play well. I just couldn't find the court with my shots. I didn't really find my game."

Strycova identified variety as the key to her win. "I was serving very well, and the plan was to mix it a little bit but to play deep.

"It's not easy against Garbine because she plays fast and also very deep. But I think she didn't have the best day while I felt good on court and that's why, I think, I won."

The 29-year-old's reward is a last 16 showdown with two-time champion Victoria Azarenka, seeded 14, for a spot in the quarter-final.

"Victoria is very, very good," said Strycova. I saw her hitting some balls the other day and she's hitting the ball very well."

Azarenka was in blistering form against 18-year-old Japanese qualifier Naomi Osaka. She disposed of her 61 61 in 56 minutes. The 26-year-old Belarusian has lost five games in three matches.

The former world number one has spoken candidly about the self-doubt that overwhelmed her when injuries hampered her progresson the circuit for two years.

"I had big plans and everything. And clearly didn't work out so well," she recalled. "So that's why I think my perspective now comes in. I stay in the moment and I am really enjoying that because making plans ahead so much doesn't really work."

Azarenka's win in Brisbane just before the Australian Open was her first title in two and a half years.

“The first challenge was getting healthy and then trying to just enjoy," she said. "It did require a lot of self-work and I had to accept myself for failures that I had. And really just accept those and move forward, try to see what I can do better.”

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