Day 6 was a fantastic day for the up-and-coming WTA players on tour as Garbine Muguruza, Simona Halep and Sloane Stephens all won to join Eugenie Bouchard in the last 16.  There is so much talent coming through and these are exciting times on the WTA tour.  On the ATP side, Grigor Dimitrov had a richly encouraging win over Milos Raonic to reach the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.

Poll Results: After 90 votes, Wozniacki and Muguruza were split 50-50! In the Dimitrov-Raonic poll, Raonic just came out on top.

1. Casey Dellacqua v Eugenie Bouchard (WTA, R4)

Eugenie Bouchard

On Sunday, Casey Dellacqua and Eugenie Bouchard will take to the court in an unlikely last of 16 match-up with the winner progressing to their first ever Grand Slam quarter-final.  On paper, it is by far the weakest of the four women’s matches for Sunday, but I think it has the potential to be a really engaging watch.  Regular readers will know that I have championed Bouchard for the last couple of months and also tipped her to crack the top ten in my WTA predictions for 2014.  Bouchard hasn’t had it all plain sailing so far; in the first round, she had to save a set point in the first set of her 7-5 6-1 win over Hao Chen Tang.  In the second round, she had to save multiple set points in a tense and rather fantastic second set tiebreak against Virginie Razzano, which she won to seal a  6-2 7-6(10) victory.  Her third round performance was the best of the bunch as she beat Lauren Davis, an improving player, 6-2 6-2.

Dellacqua loves the heat in Melbourne and that may have been a factor in her smooth progression through the draw.  In three matches, she has lost just 13 games with wins over Vera Zvonareva, Kirsten Flipkens and Jie Zheng.  Dellacqua did reach the 4th round of the AO in 2008 when she beat Patty Schnyder and Amelie Mauresmo.  I watched her match with Victoria Azarenka in Brisbane and despite a 6-3 6-1 scoreline, she actually played really well.  This will be a first career match-up between the pair.  Dellacqua will have the support of the home crowd, which she has thrived on all week.  She is the more experienced player, but I do believe Bouchard is the mentally tougher of the two.  I am looking forward to this one and I believe it will be Bouchard, who becomes the first of the promising teens to crack the last eight of a Slam.

Prediction: Bouchard to beat Dellacqua in 3 sets

2. Serena Williams v Ana Ivanovic (WTA, R4)

This is the first detailed preview of the tournament featuring Serena Williams as we begin to near the business end of the tournament.  The American has not been at her best, but has suvived the heat and is yet to lose more than three games in any of the six sets she has won so far.  Serena defeated her first seeded opponent on Friday, Daniela Hantuchova, 6-3 6-3.  Serena takes on Ana Ivanovic in the 4th round, which will be a battle between two players who are unbeaten in 2014.  Ivanovic enjoyed one of her best wins at a Slam for quite some time as she came back from an odd first set to beat Sam Stosur, 6-7(8) 6-4 6-2 in 2 hours and 14 minutes.  The match featured a strange tiebreak where Ivanovic netted an easy forehand after a freak burst of rain causing a brief delay at a crucial juncture of the match.  The head-to-head is naturally in Serena’s favour.  So does Ivanovic have a chance? To be honest, I don’t think so.  Ivanovic is playing well so far this year, but if she did get into a winning position, I am not sure she would have the mentality to hold on.  A set off Serena would be a brilliant result for Ana.

Prediction: Serena to beat Ivanovic in 2 sets (1 tight, 1 easy)

3. David Ferrer v Florian Mayer (ATP, R4)

For the first time in ten attempts, Florian Mayer has reached the second week of the Australian Open.  Mayer has beaten two seeds along the way, Mikhail Youzhny and Jerzy Janowicz, taking advantage of a hole in the draw and building on his early season form, which saw him beat Andy Murray in Doha.  Mayer takes on David Ferrer in the 4th round, who has been solid as ever in Melbourne.  Based on early season form, you would have thought that Jeremy Chardy may have had a chance of an upset in his third rounder with Ferrer; however the Spaniard kept the door firmly shut as he won 6-2 7-6(5) 6-2.  Ferrer leads the head-to-head with Mayer by 4 wins to 3; Mayer actually won their last match in Shanghai at the end of 2013 and it was a match I correctly predicted.  Ferrer has meant business this week although he hasn’t exactly been tested with the calibre of opponents.  This will be his toughest test of the week so far and I see him losing a set or two on the way to the quarters.

Prediction: Ferrer to beat Mayer in 4 sets

4. Novak Djokovic v Fabio Fognini (ATP, R4)

At this stage of the tournament in 2013, Novak Djokovic took to the Rod Laver Arena with Stanislas Wawrinka, which many people had earmarked as a straightforward win.  It turned out to be the best match of 2013.  One year on and Djokovic will be playing Fabio Fognini in the 4th round, which could be a good one.  I can never seem to call Fognini; when I tip him to bomb first round, he starts playing well and vice versa! That has been the case this week in what has been a surprisingly strong performance so far that has seen him defeat Jarkko Nieminen and a resurgent Sam Querrey.  Djokovic has sailed through although Denis Istomin did play a good match against him in the third round, eventually falling 6-3 6-3 7-5.  Djokovic has a 6-0 head-to-head lead and will be confident of progressing forward to the quarter-finals.  If Fognini does show up for this one, it could be a really fun one.

Prediction: Djokovic to beat Fognini in 3 sets (1 tiebreak, 2 easy)

WTA AO 4th Round Predictions

Na Li to beat Ekaterina Makarova in 2 tight sets

Angelique Kerber to beat Flavia Pennetta in 2 tight sets

ATP AO 4th Round Predictions

Tomas Berdych to beat Kevin Anderson in 3 sets (Poor, Kevin)

Stanislas Wawrinka to beat Tommy Robredo in 3 sets