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Melbourne - French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko was pushed all the way by China's Duan Yingying before grinding out a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 win in the second round of the Australian Open.
The big-hitting Latvian let out a scream of joy on match point after a battling victory Wednesday in an hour and 44 minutes.
Ostapenko dropped her serve twice before winning a see-saw opening set 6-3. But the Chinese world number 100 bounced back to take the second by the same score line.
The final act followed a similar pattern with the pair locked on serve until 4-4 when Ostapenko edged in front. And she served out with massive yell of emotion towards her supporters.
"She was hitting the ball really hard," said seventh seeded Ostapenko. "I'm so happy I could win.
"Everyone wants to beat you when you've won a Grand
Slam so I'll just keep trying my best."
She next faces Mona Barthel of Germany or Estonia's Anett Kontaveit for a place in the last 16 of the year's first Grand Slam.
Results from the Australian Open on Wednesday:
Men's singles
2nd round
Pablo Carreno-Busta (ESP x10) bt Gilles Simon (FRA) 6-2, 3-0 ret
Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) bt Ruben Bemelmans (BEL) 7-5, 6-1, 6-3
Andreas Seppi (ITA) bt Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN) 6-1, 6-3, 6-4
Gilles Muller (LUX x23) bt Malek Jaziri (TUN) 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 3-6, 6-2
Kyle Edmund (GBR) bt Denis Istomin (UZB) 6-2, 6-2, 6-4
Marin Cilic (CRO x6) bt Joo Sousa (POR) 6-1, 7-5, 6-2
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x15) bt Denis Shapovalov (CAN) 3-6, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 7-5
Damir Dzumhur (BIH x28) bt John Millman (AUS) 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
Ryan Harrison (USA) bt Pablo Cuevas (URU x31) 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4
Ivo Karlovic (CRO) bt Yuichi Sugita (JPN) 7-6 (7/3), 6-7 (3/7), 7-5, 4-6, 12-10
Rafael Nadal (ESP x1) bt Leonardo Mayer (ARG) 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4)
Diego Schwartzman (ARG x24) bt Casper Ruud (NOR) 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
Women's singles
2nd round
Denisa Allertova (CZE) bt Zhang Shuai (CHN) 6-4, 7-6 (7/5)
Marta Kostyuk (UKR) bt Olivia Rogowska (AUS) 6-3, 7-5
Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS x15) 6-2, 6-3
Elina Svitolina (UKR x4) bt Katerina Siniakova (CZE) 4-6, 6-2, 6-1
Luksika Kumkhum (THA) bt Belinda Bencic (SUI) 6-1, 6-3
Petra Martic (CRO) bt Irina Begu (ROM) 6-4, 7-6 (7/3)
Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK x19) bt Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) 6-4, 0-6, 6-2
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x2) bt Jana Fett (CRO) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
Magda Linette (POL) bt Darya Kasatkina (RUS x22) 7-6 (7/4), 6-2
Jelena Ostapenko (LAT x7) bt Duan Yingying (CHN) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Kaia Kanepi (EST) bt Monica Puig (PUR) 6-4, 6-3
Kiki Bertens (NED x30) bt Nicole Gibbs (USA) 7-6 (7/3), 6-0
Anett Kontaveit (EST x32) bt Mona Barthel (GER) 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
