With three-time grand slam champion Andy Murray ruled out of the year’s first major due to a hip injury, Kyle Edmund is admirably carrying the torch for Britain as he upset last year’s semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov to make the last four at the Australian Open.
He wasn’t alone in springing a surprise Tuesday, with the surging Elise Mertens becoming the latest unexpected women’s semifinalist in Melbourne when the Belgian crushed an ailing Elina Svitolina 6-4 6-0. The fourth seed said she was bothered by a hip injury.
Edmund, who moved to England from South Africa aged three and is now based in the Bahamas, is just the sixth British man to go this deep at a grand slam in the Open Era and the first other than Murray since Tim Henman at the 2004 US Open.
Henman usually doesn’t travel to grand slams nowadays as he prefers to be at home but he was in attendance at Rod Laver Arena to watch Edmund’s heroics.
Given Murray’s absence and the second-round defeat of one of the women’s favorites, Johanna Konta, world No. 49 Edmund has largely been the focus of the traveling British press, who outnumber just about every other nation in sending written media to tennis tournaments.
When asked how he was dealing with all the attention, Edmund quipped: “I know what it feels like to be Andy Murray for the last eight years!”
But the 23-year-old also knows it is a good position to be in because it means he is still in the tournament.
First top-10 win
Edmund began his Melbourne campaign by ousting US Open finalist Kevin Anderson and in defeating Dimitrov, collected his first top-10 win in 15 attempts. He is sure to face more top-10 opposition Thursday in either Rafael Nadal or Marin Cilic.
Nadal is the favorite in that night session clash since he has won his last five matches against the Croatian, dropping one set.
A Nadal-Edmund semifinal would resemble the potential semifinal in the other half of the draw, Roger Federer versus Hyeon Chung: One of the sport’s titans encountering a prospect with a seemingly bright future.
The 21-year-old Chung from South Korea stunned six-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic on Monday — the Serbian’s elbow continues to bother him — and next tangles with the previously little known Tennys Sandgren of the US. Federer meanwhile faces Tomas Berdych knowing he owns a 19-6 record against the 2010 Wimbledon finalist.
As for Dimitrov, perhaps an accumulation of lengthy matches cost the third seed Tuesday. He needed five sets to beat the unheralded Mackenzie McDonald in the second round and four to see off Andrey Rublev thereafter.
He subsequently defeated Nick Kyrgios in a draining, three-set night match Sunday.
Mertens may be a relative unknown to casual tennis fans but her start to 2018 suggests her sojourn in Melbourne is no fluke: The world No. 36 became the first player to successfully defend her title in Hobart on the eve of the Australian Open.
The 22-year-old Belgian was due to play Australian Open qualifying in 2017 but because of her deep run in Hobart, had to miss out. So this is her first time in the main draw.
“Didn’t really have a lot of expectations here,” Mertens, who rallied from a 0-5 deficit against home favorite Daria Gavrilova in the second round, told reporters.
“I played a qualifier first round, so I was expected to win. Not always easy, but yeah, as it moved forward, first round, second round, I didn’t really expect to be in the semis.”
Mertens grew up close to Kim Clijsters’ home town of Bree and idolized the four-time grand slam winner. She trains at Clijsters’ academy and has been in touch with her during the fortnight.
“She has been here before,” said Mertens. “She has the experience, so it’s always nice to talk to her. And also, for the emotions, to see what she has to tell me or can, yeah, communicate.”
Mertens’ next challenger is either second-seed Caroline Wozniacki or Carla Suarez Navarro. Wozniacki — seeking that first grand slam title after losses in a pair of US Open finals — and Suarez Navarro follow Nadal-Cilic on Rod Laver Arena.