By Chris Oddo | Sunday, January 24, 2016
Daria Gavrilova showed a lot of maturity by apologizing to fans for what she perceived to be a poor effort on Sunday night in Melbourne.
Australia’s Daria Gavrilova saw her Grand Slam dream crash to a halt on Sunday night in Melbourne, but it wasn’t the result that irked Gavrilova—it was her behavior.
More: Gavrilova Leaves Fans in Stitches During On-Court Interview
During Carla Suarez Navarro’s 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over the Aussie, Gavrilova lost her cool several times during the match, and her performance became erratic as the match wound down. It wasn’t one single outburst, rather more of a slow, painful and unproductive meltdown that saw the Aussie slip in form and function. After turning in just three unforced errors in the opening set, Gavrilova committed 36 unforced errors in the final two.
The 21-year-old, who is reportedly working with a sports psychologist to help her sort out the emotional side of her game, was out of sorts at the finish, and she clearly lost her focus and emotional balance.
To her credit, she was more than willing to acknowledge her weakness after the match.
“It wasn't great and I'm very disappointed with myself,” Gavrilova said of her performance. “I was being a little girl. Just, yeah, I'm very disappointed with myself.”
She added: “It's not acceptable. I don't know why I did that. I was terrible.”
Later, Gavrilova took to twitter to apologize to the myriad supporters who have taken a liking to the young firestarter.
Despite the troubles, Gavrilova had a breakout week that saw her reach the second week at a major for the first time. The flipside of all her emotions is that her passion produces a fiery persona that really resonates with fans. She may have hit a bump in the road on Sunday, but her ability to recognize that she took it too far and her willingness to hold herself accountable bodes well for the future of the 21-year-old.
Suarez Navarro, who reached the Australian Open quarterfinals for the second time with the victory, will face Agniezska Radwanska for a spot in the semis.
Radwanska nearly had her wings clipped by Germany’s relatively unknown Anna-Lena Friedsam, but a late surge by the Pole saw her win the final five games to claim a 6-7(6) 6-1 7-5 victory. Friedsam, who impressed many with her explosive backhand and poise, ran out of gas late in the decider. She got treatment from the trainer while trailing 5-4 in the final set, and when play resumed she was hobbled by cramps and reduced to tears and Radwanska rattled off the final three games.
“A bit lucky in the end,” Radwanska said. “Just one break. The serve maybe was not the key in that match. But still, this is the kind of score that is very typical to come back. I had no choice, just to fight till the end for each point. That's what I did.”