adminBritain’s Heather Watson upset the American Sloane Stephens 6-3, 6-1 at the Hobart International as she warmed up for the first grand slam of 2015.
The British No1 will meet the ninth seed Roberta Vinci of Italy in the quarter-finals after seeing off the world No 34 Stephens in just 64 minutes.
The twice US Open quarter-finalist fought back to beat Annika Beck of Germany 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
“This is how I want to play consistently,” Watson, the world No 49 who beat Slovakia’s Magdalena Rybarikova in the first round, said. “I’m feeling good, confident and very comfortable coming to the net.”
The Australian Open starts on January 19 and Watson is running into form after partnering Andy Murray in a 3-0 win over Australia at the Hopman Cup on Saturday.
However, she refused to be drawn on her chances of taking the title in Hobart, saying: “I never think about winning the tournament. It’s a boring answer. You probably want me to say yes, but I’m just focusing on my next match.
“I had a tough draw in the first match and then Sloane in the second round, so I’m very pleased to get through those matches.
“I thought to myself no matter what happens in the match I’m going to stay aggressive from the first point to the last and I did that today.” — The Guardian
derick.khumalo