MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) – After leading by a set and two breaks, Ekaterina Makarova needed three sets and almost three hours to finally beat WTA Finals champion Dominika Cibulkova 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-3 in the third round at the Australian Open.
Meanwhile, a ‘‘super-focused’’ Serena Williams joined sister Venus in the fourth round of the Australian Open Saturday, ruthlessly snuffing out Nicole Gibbs’s challenge as she accelerates towards a record 23rd Grand Slam title.
The second seed clinically dispatched her fellow American 6-1, 6-3 on Rod Laver Arena, further dispelling any lingering doubts about her early-season form.
It is the 14th time in her 17 Australian Opens she has made at least the fourth round.
Makarova has reached the semifinals at the Australian Open before, but didn’t want to celebrate anything on Saturday more than her first career win over Cibulkova – the 2014 finalist here.
“An amazing fight,’’ Makarova said. “I got, to be honest, a bit tight at 4-0 in the second set,’’ Makarova said. “But I’m still here. I love this Grand Slam. I want to enjoy my win today. It’s my first over Dominika, and she’s a great player.’’
Makarova went on a six-game roll to clinch the first set and lead 4-0 in the second, but Cibulkova won the next five to take the momentum.
The left-handed Makarova tripped and fell to the court and later needed medical attention for her right elbow in the third set.
In a match featuring 11 service breaks, Makarova got the decisive break in the eighth game of the deciding set to lead 5-3 and then held to close, setting up match point with her fifth ace of the day.
Makarova will play either 2016 semifinalist Johanna Konta, who beat her in the fourth round here last year, or former No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki.
Mirjana Lucic-Baroni continued her unlikely run with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Maria Sakkari.
Before this week, the 34-year-old Lucic-Baroni hadn’t won a match at Melbourne Park since her debut at the Australian Open in 1998. The 19-year gap in between match wins at a Grand Slam tournament broke the record set by Kimiko Date-Krumm, who went 17 years between match wins at Wimbledon.
Lucic-Baroni reached the semifinals of Wimbledon in 1999 as a 17-year-old and captured the Australian Open doubles title a year before that with Martina Hingis.
She next plays American Jennifer Brady, a qualifier ranked No. 116, for a chance to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal since her run at Wimbledon 17 years ago.
Brady had never played in one of the four Grand Slam events in tennis before she qualified for the Australian Open.
The 21-year-old American has been making the most of the occasion, including a 7-6 (4), 6-2 win over 14th-seeded Elena Vesnina on Show Court 2.
By saving five match points before rallying to beat Heather Watson in the second round, Brady effectively doubled her number of career wins.
No. 16-seeded Barbora Strycova beat No. 21 Caroline Garcia 6-2, 7-5 to reach the fourth round, where she’ll meet either Serena Williams or Nicole Gibbs.