MELBOURNE, Australia - Serena Williams lost her Australian Open quarterfinal to Karolina Pliskova after being called for a foot-fault when she was serving on match point.
Williams was serving for the match at 5-1 in the third when she was called for a foot-fault, and then appeared to roll her left ankle during a point. She was broken while serving for the match.
In one of the most stunning comebacks at the Australian Open, the seventh-seeded Pliskova saved four match points as she rallied to win the last six games to clinch a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory and a semifinal spot against U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka.
Pliskova says her ''mind was in the locker room'' when she was down 5-1 in the third against the 23-time major winner.
''I didn't have too many chances in the third set. I was a little bit too passive. Obviously mentally down,'' Pliskova said. ''So I just said, 'Let's try this game, on 5-2, maybe I'm going to have couple of chances.'
''She got a bit shaky at the end, so I took my chances, and I won.''
Pliskova's win over the seven-time Australian Open titlist means there'll be a first-time women's champion at Melbourne Park this year.
In the other semifinal, two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova will play Danielle Collins, who had never won a Grand Slam match before this tournament. Kvitova's best previous run at Melbourne was to the semifinals in 2012.
