Merola takes down Howell in biggest upset of Australian Open
Lewis Williams secures second Open semi-final with four set win over Michael Williams
Nino Merola has pulled off one of the upsets of the decade, taking out world number 3 Nick Howell from the Australian Open in the quarter-finals at the Royal Melbourne Tennis Club on Thursday. Meanwhile, Lewis Williams has qualified for his second Australian Open semi-final, defeating Michael Williams in four sets in a repeat of the same fixture in 2023. In the women’s draw, rising stars Katherine Carney and Emma Clyde impressed but couldn’t make inroads on the scoreboard against the third and fourth seeds Tara Lumley and Saskia Bollerman in a jam-packed day of quarter-final action.
In cooler conditions than the previous day, the day started with the women’s quarter-final match between third seed Tara Lumley and junior World Champion Katherine Carney. Carney came out with a plan to play stylish floor shots into Lumley’s backhand. But Lumley’s court coverage was equal to the challenge, reapplying pressure back in the other direction. Soon enough Carney switched to plan B, slamming balls into the main wall and generating the angle coming across Lumley. But Lumley was happy enough to step across and generate effective counterplay against the tambour. Lumley was content to sit in and play out the longer rallies, waiting for an inaccuracy from Carney, so never needed to play any particularly expansive shots. Carney was competitive, but couldn’t convert enough points into games to make the match truly close. Lumley walked away the winner, but Carney was annoyed not to have pushed her further.
The open quarter-finals then kicked off with the third seed Steve Virgona playing the unseeded local pro John Woods-Casey. Woods-Casey was overly ambitious with his strokeplay early in the match, trying to end the rallies quickly but often resulting in an error. Virgona’s retrieval was outstanding, picking up everything that Woods-Casey could throw at him which only compounded the Melbourne pro’s frustration. Virgona’s consistency was good enough such that whenever he did send up a loose ball, Woods-Casey was trying to compute through all the permutations of how to hit a winner that he more often than not ended up producing a nothing shot. Woods-Casey did improve as the set went on, settling into rallying with Virgona rather than trying to outright beat him, going on to save five set points in the 5/1 game before finally succumbing to the sixth.
Woods-Casey quickly found himself with a 1/5 deficit in the second set as well but he started to find a balance between being too passive and too aggressive. By looking more for balls over the low part of the net and keeping it short on the floor, he was better able to find winners without resorting to out-and-out pace. Woods-Casey’s movement was better too, preventing Virgona from laying a chase as he fought back game after game, eventually closing the deficit to 4/5. Finally, Virgona did recover the serve, winning set point with a ball that struck the top edge of the back penthouse bandeau and dropped loopily into the winning gallery.
The third set was the most competitive thus far, as Woods-Casey continued to block Virgona out of the service end. He got better at reading Virgona’s boast, placing the ball deep underneath the grille. Virgona remained unfazed, playing his natural game of taking everything on the forehand. They exchanged games evenly for the first seven games of the set, before a tight battle for the 4/3 game. Woods-Casey had several chances to push the set deep, but found the net each time hitting the ball across the line. Virgona took the final game easily, securing his place in the semi-finals.
The third women’s quarter-final was between local favourite Jo See Tan and the second seed Lea Van Der Zwalmen. It was Van Der Zwalmen’s first competition since losing the World Championships last May, and only arrived at the club minutes before her match from the airport. Van Der Zwalmen, despite not having practiced on the court, was in complete control of the match, particularly on the return of serve. She had the ball on a string, pushing Tan from side to side and wearing her out. Van Der Zwalmen particularly impressed with a series of no-look backhand digs retrieving balls off of and in front of the tambour. Tan pushed hard to pick up two games in the second set, but Van Der Zwalmen found it far too easy to pick off her backhand. The Frenchwoman won comfortably, moving into her first semi-final in Melbourne.
The next match was a rematch of the final from 12 months prior, with Camden Riviere playing Kieran Booth. The club was now buzzing with players in the Boomerang Cup. Although it wasn’t reflected in the scoreline, Riviere had to work hard for his points, as Booth’s extreme pace sent him diving into corner after corner, with Riviere thrilling the crowd with his out-of-this-world retrieving ability and talent. His extreme racket control and immaculate touch had Booth lunging around trying to stay in the rally. Booth fought as hard as he was able but was simply outclassed by the World Champion, as the match never developed as a contest.
The third open quarter-final pitted second seed Nick Howell against fourth seed Nino Merola. Merola approached the match with a clear game plan: feed Howell’s cut-volley with high serves, short railroads and two-bounce demi-piques and avoid his force at all costs. He then looked to manoeuvre the rally to get a ball onto the main-wall tambour. Combined with a couple of flush high serves, Merola was able to keep pace with Howell throughout the first set, eventually reaching a deciding game. Merola earned a 30-15 lead before heading down the receiving end to attack two worse than a yard chases. He beat the first one on the floor, setting up two set points. He couldn’t take the first one against the short chase, nor the second after a long, desperate rally where he barely kept the ball in play several times over. At deuce, Merola took the advantage and a chase, his final ball rattling both the bottom and top ledges of the grille before Howell put the ball in the net — Merola letting out a big celebration in response.
Merola rolled on into the second set by slamming a series of main-wall dedans. From then on, Howell looked defeated in the set, shoulders slumped as Merola barely missed a ball. Every reaching shot he attempted seemed to be executed to perfection. He continued to add to his dedans count over the course of the set. Howell struggled to find any attacking options as Merola had an answer for everything. Merola was dialled in on the high serve too, getting many to drop flush, and even those that didn’t still garnered a weak return from Howell. He dominated from both ends of the court, winning the first five games of the set, though Howell was able to avoid being bagelled.
Howell recovered in the third set. throwing caution to the wind and playing his shots with more freedom. Merola’s hot hand cooled off, especially once Howell started to build a lead on the scoreboard. The Radley professional wasn’t given any option to hit into empty space, and when he did he overextended. By the end of the set, Howell was in full flow, while Merola was left searching for ideas, and was no longer able to prevent Howell’s force. After Merola won the first game of the set, Howell took the remaining six to reduce the deficit by one set.
Merola kicked back into gear in the fourth set at 1/2 down, when facing down two short chases. He hit two textbook perfect cut-volleys to beat both of them on the floor. From that moment on, his confidence built, once again finding success with his return of serve and accuracy with his forcing. He continued to beat short chases through the rest of the set, picking off Howell’s serving with ease. He was also winning the tactical battles of the longer points, working over Howell until the perfect moment to hit a winner. He won four straight games until Howell defended match point in the 5/2 game. Howell brought the scoreline back to 5/4 before Merola brought up another two set points. Howell saw off the first one with a nick railroad, but Merola took the second defending a three yard chase, celebrating the biggest win of his career with hugs with his fellow British pros.
The win marked Merola’s first qualification to an Open semi-final, and his first victory against a better-than-scratch handicap — barring benefiting from a retirement by Bryn Sayers at the 2024 Champions Trophy. It was Howell’s first loss to a worse-than-scratch handicap since the 2015 US National Final against John Lumley, and the first time a member of the world top 4 has lost to a worse-than-scratch handicap in an Open since Chris Chapman’s loss to Leon Smart at the 2022 US Open.
Running an hour and a half over schedule, the last women’s quarter-final took to the court. Recently crowned RMTC club champion Emma Clyde played Dutch champion and fourth seed Saskia Bollerman. Clyde was positive from the beginning, playing with a compact style generating excellent length and cut, avoiding the dangerous Bollerman volley. Bollerman immediately identified that she needed to bring her A game, moving around the court well and probing questions into Clyde’s game. Bollerman played with power and control, rarely making an error and forcing Clyde into difficult positions. Clyde’s attempts to counterattack skirted her too close to danger, finding the net a little too often. Though each game was closely fought, Bollerman was far better at converting points into games, winning in straight sets with the scoreline doing Clyde a disservice.
The last quarter-final was between Lewis Williams and Michael Williams — no relation. Aside from sharing a last name, the two also shared a penchant for hitting the ball with extreme pace. But it would be Lewis Williams who could couple the pace with control the best, throwing in softer shots as well to send Michael Williams deep into the corners. His railroad was also very tight, getting several to nick unreturnably, and his footwork was on point, moving around the court freely and reading the back wall well. Lewis Williams won the first set comfortably, dropping just one game.
Michael Williams fought back into the second set, narrowing the difference between the two considerably and forcing Lewis Williams to have to lift his game. The world number 10 was up to the task, carving the ball around the court with plenty of swerve. It gave him plenty of opportunity to show off his quick hands and fast feet. Michael Williams pulled a couple of games back late, but Lewis Williams had the set securely all the way through.
By the third set, Michael Williams looked defeated, with the after-effects of the long match the previous day beginning to show. Lewis Williams was cruising at 3/0 in the third set. But then Michael Williams found a second wind at the same time that Lewis Williams went flat. Michael Williams’s shotmaking found another level, barely missing a ball as he won the next five games. Lewis Williams had to hit some of his most clutch shots of the match to wrestle the scoreline back to 5-all. The deciding game opened with a two of Lewis Williams forces missed high, which gave Michael Williams an opening onto the grille. After Lewis Williams took two chases into the backhand, Michael Williams slammed both into the forehand corner, which Lewis Williams put into the net and sending the match into a fourth set.
The fourth set was the tightest of the match, with the players exchanging games throughout. Neither player was quite hitting their targets and hence neither was able to dominate play. It was scrappy and loose, with plenty of awkward bounces and funky spins, with suited both Williams equally. Lewis Williams pulled ahead briefly from 3-all to 5/3. Michael Williams saved two set points in the 5/3 game, including attacking a worse than 2 chase with an excellent cut-volley and another in the 5/4 game with a high back wall to beat a hazard chase. But Lewis Williams won the match on his fourth attempt, sending the ball into the grille after a long desperation rally. Lewis Williams progressed to his second Australian Open semi-final, with his first coming in 2023 after he also defeated Michael Williams in four sets.
Play continues on Friday with the first of the doubles main draw matches in both the open and women’s draws. The singles competitions will resume on Saturday with the semi-finals of both draws.
Match results:
10:00 AM: Tara Lumley (3) def Katherine Carney 6/2 6/2
11:00 AM: Steve Virgona (3) def John Woods-Casey 6/1 6/4 6/3
1:30 PM: Jo See Tan lost to Lea Van Der Zwalmen (2) 1/6 2/6
2:30 PM: Camden Riviere (1) def Kieran Booth (6) 6/1 6/0 6/1
4:00 PM: Nino Merola (7) def Nick Howell (2) 6/5 6/1 1/6 6/4
7:00 PM: Emma Clyde lost to Saskia Bollerman (4) 2/6 3/6
8:00 PM: Michael Williams lost to Lewis Williams (4) 1/6 3/6 6/5
Order of play for Friday (all times AEDT):
10:00 AM: Claire Fahey & Alex Marino-Hume vs Camden Riviere & Chris Chapman (2)
Followed by (approx 12:00 PM): Nick Howell & Steve Virgona (1) vs Kieran Booth & Oliver Pridmore
Not before 2:00 PM: Lewis Williams & Levi Gale (3) vs John Woods-Casey & Ben Hudson
Followed by (approx 4:00 PM): Julia McCahey & Prue McCahey vs Jo See Tan & Penny Lumley (3)
Not before 5:00 PM: Emma Clyde & Rachel Hollington vs Lea Van Der Zwalmen & Katherine Carney (2)
Followed by (approx 6:00 PM): Michael Williams & Chris Sievers vs Nino Merola & Henry Henman (4)