Australian Open 2018: 15-year-old Marta Kostyuk beats Martina Hingis' record, becomes youngest woman to reach Round 3
What's the story?
The Australian Open is shaping up nicely after two rounds of intense tennis battles and the draw is just about starting to get challenging for some of the top players at the event. For one teenager, however, the odds were challenging to begin with.
15-year-old Marta Kostyuk has made history at the Aussie Open after becoming the youngest woman since 1997 to make it to the third round of a grand slam event following her 6-3 7-5 victory over Olivia Rogowska. The Ukrainian youngster could hardly believe it after she triumphed and her reaction showed just how much it meant to her and her coaching staff.
In case you didn't know...
Kostyuk was last year's Junior Champion at the Rod Laver Arena and received a wildcard entry into the main draw but her world ranking of 521 shows that nobody expected her to sail into the third round of the grand slam.
The heart of the matter
Kostyuk showed tremendous skill in her battle in the second round, which shows that she is far from a pushover in the tournament. Her straight sets triumph had moments of brilliance that highlight the quality she possesses at a very young age.
Kostyuk's win made her the youngest woman to reach the last 32 at Melbourne since one Martina Hingis pulled off the feat in 1996.
What's next?
Kostyuk's memorable journey is only going to get tougher as she faces fellow Ukrainian Elina Svitolina in the last 32 of the tournament where she has promised she will enjoy the moment but also try and show her best tennis, as she has in the previous two rounds.
Author's take
Just when you think you've seen it all, the tennis world keeps throwing up new surprises. It will be interesting to see just how far this teenager can progress in the Australian Open.