This year’s Australian Open will have a new women’s winner with two-time defending champion Victoria Azarenka ousted in three sets by Pole Agnieszka Radwanska. In a match that lasted exactly two hours, Radwanska’s disciplined game allowed an uncharacteristically wayward Azarenka to self-destruct. Shocked by the sheer amount of upsets they’d seen in 48 hours, the crowd were almost accepting of the idea that the tournament will be without the women’s champion as well as the men’s heading into the semifinals.

Radwanska broke in the second game of the match and never looked back. Recognizing Azarenka’s vulnerability on her serve, she broke again in the fourth game before holding serve to seal the first set 6-1. Radwanska attacked ruthlessly but was assisted by an errant Azarenka, who made a whopping 17 unforced errors in the first set.

The match looked to be Radwanska’s after converted her sole break point in the second set. However, Azarenka hasn’t won two titles in a row at Melbourne Park for being passive. She seized her break points and broke back twice to send the game to a deciding set. It was a cleaner second set by Azarenka as she reined in her game to outnumber her unforced errors with her winners and seal it 7-5.

But, after breaking Azarenka’s serve in the first game of the third set, the match was essentially Radwanska’s as she did not drop another game. She broke twice more to seal the match 6-1 5-7 6-0.

Azarenka lamented her mistakes on the points that mattered. “I think there were just too many mistakes and too many easy mistakes on important moments,” an annoyed Azarenka said. “Like from the drop shot to the drop shot when I had the full court. Of course, she was passing amazing today and getting to every ball.”

The dethroned champion admitted that she was simply outplayed by her opponent. “She was aggressive. She was making everything (and) guessing right. I was just playing a little bit too predictive,” she said.

Radwanska credited her win to her mindset entering the match. “I really had nothing to lose. She was defending the title, not me,” an elated Radwanska said.  “I was really trying to play my best tennis, go for every shot I could.”

The world No. 5 also tried to sharpen her serve in order to beat the Belarussian. “I was just trying to play aggressive, not in the middle, and focus on the serves as well,” she said. “I think you really have to do everything to beat those kinds of players like Vika.”

Earlier in the day, the sense of emotion still lingered in parts of the crowd on Rod Laver Arena who had witnessed the incredible upset of Novak Djokovic just 11 hours earlier. They had to leave that emotion behind as the first match of the morning promised much. It was the contest of the pocket rockets with Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova taking on Romanian Simona Halep.

What it promised and what it delivered were polar opposites. What the eager crowd witnessed was not so much a contest as it was a full demonstration of Cibulkova’s potential to win the tournament, showcasing her solid baseline game and her wide array of skills. In a one-sided quarterfinal matchup, the Slovakian was far too good in a 6-3 6-0 rout that lasted exactly 60 minutes. It appeared to be a bridge too far for Halep, who struggled to recover after her highly emotional win against eighth seed Jelena Jankovic on Monday.

As good as Cibulkova was, she was assisted by an inaccurate and inconsistent Halep who was constantly rushed and run ragged by the 5’3 Slovakian. Cibulkova played an extremely aggressive brand of tennis as she attacked both wings of her opponent. She also defended extremely well, ensuring that Halep had to make one extra shot to win the point.

After never really being in the match, Halep admitted that she was ill prepared for a grand slam quarterfinal. “I couldn't play today. I had emotions, big emotions, and I couldn't manage this,” a disappointed Halep stated. “Before the match I was very nervous and I didn't feel the ball at all. I couldn't move my body and I couldn't play.”

Halep also felt that she didn’t know how to prepare mentally for the match. “I learned that I have to be relaxed before the match because it is just a match,” she said frankly. “I don't want to think anymore that it's the quarterfinals of a grand slam. Don't put pressure anymore on myself and just to enjoy the match.”

The 20th seeded Cibulkova admitted that she felt the mental difference between her and her opponent. “I think it was also very important today because I’d already played on the stage,” she admitted.  “I’ve already played a couple quarterfinals in a Grand Slam. I’ve already played semifinals in a Grand Slam. So that was my experience today. I was ready for it. It was, for me, like every other match.”

In contrast to how Ana Ivanovic had struggled to regroup emotionally from her upset win over Serena Williams, Cibulkova showed maturity in moving forward from her upset of Maria Sharapova in the previous round.

“Of course I'm really glad with the way I played, especially with the way I handled it mentally. It was a big win against Maria,” a delighted Cibulkova said. “I wasn't the favorite in this match again against Halep, (but) I walked on the court with the confidence that I can do it again today.”

If she does it two more times, she will lift the Australian Open trophy for her first major title.