The Williams sisters have not met late in the second week of a major for a long time, but both should be favored to advance in the women’s quarterfinals at the Australian Open.

Serena Williams versus Dominika Cibulkova

The finish line of the Australian Open is now well within sight, but clearing those last few hurdles is never easy.  Few people know this better than Serena Williams.  It takes grit and determination, which Williams has shown plenty of this fortnight.  She is likely to need to do so again when she takes on Dominika Cibulkova for a place in the semifinals.

Despite being last year’s finalist, few people were talking about Cibulkova as a dark horse at this year’s Australian Open.  That is probably because her results were not great outside the first quarter of last season.  The Slovak did not inspire hope with her play coming into Melbourne either, given that she only won a single match between her appearances in Brisbane and Sydney.  But Cibulkova seems to have rediscovered the magic that nearly earned her the 2014 Australian Open crown, and she is looking like an outside contender once again.

Unlike Cibulkova, Williams is considered a contender at virtually any event she enters, although she looked far from a lock coming into this major.  The American suffered some puzzling losses in the weeks leading up to Melbourne, and she has been pushed more than once on her journey to the quarterfinals.  Like the champion that she is, however, Williams found ways to win even when not at her best.  She may need to call on that fighting spirit again if she wants to get by Cibulkova.

One good thing for Williams coming into this match is that she probably feels more comfortable facing Cibulkova than she did against her last few opponents.  She has played the Slovak four times, so she is familiar with her game.  Furthermore, Williams has won on all four occasions, and only once has she surrendered a set.  Additionally, while Cibulkova has been to the finals here and advanced to at least the quarterfinals in the other three majors, she does not have nearly the same amount of experience at this level as Williams.  That all adds up to a bigger mental mountain for Cibulkova to climb.

If anyone is up to the challenge though, it is the No. 11 seed.  She is one of the feistiest competitors on tour, and she will not be shy about vocally pumping herself up.  Cibulkova could have plenty to cheer as well.  She is an excellent mover, and particularly when considering her size, gets a lot of pop on her groundstrokes.  She is always looking to attack, and she is going to need to remain aggressive to avoid allowing Williams to gain control of too many of the points.  For her own part, Williams must have a better serving day than she had in her last couple of matches, because Cibulkova will make her pay on any weak second serves.  Assuming Williams can do that, she should have the superior firepower to get the job done.

So much of this match is dependent on how Williams is playing.  Cibulkova definitely has the skills to make this an entertaining and competitive affair, but particularly if Williams continues to play in sluggish patches, the Slovak also has the necessary tools to garner the upset.  In short, Williams is the favorite in this matchup, but it would not be a shock if lightning struck twice for Cibulkova in Melbourne.

Venus Williams versus Madison Keys

Cinderella stories often emerge at the Grand Slams, and this year’s Australian Open women’s draw has produced two of them.  The majority of people would not have pegged Venus Williams to reach the quarterfinals, and still far fewer would have predicted the same for Madison Keys.  But both women have defied the odds, and they will now compete against one another with a berth in the semifinals hanging in the balance.

Williams defying the odds is perhaps not quite as surprising as Keys doing the same.  The veteran American had not been to the second week of a major since 2011, but it was evident she was playing good ball based on her title run in Auckland.  As someone who has multiple major singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles to her name, she has also already proven that she can handle the pressure moments in the Grand Slams.

At age 19, Keys is just beginning to prove of what she could be capable.  She has been talked about as one of the top American prospects, but injuries and general inexperience have hampered her efforts.  Never once has she been to the second week of a major, so her appearance in the last eight here in Melbourne already represents a big breakthrough for her.  She is going to take a lot of positives away from this tournament, but no doubt the up-and-comer is not ready for this fairytale run to end.

Keys will have more than a decent look at advancing to the final four at her compatriot’s expense, too.  The young American should not only be able to match Williams from the baseline but could potentially outhit her.  Keys is also arguably more effective in the serving department, especially off her second delivery, which could prove crucial over the long haul.  It is essential for Keys to consistently have all of her weapons working for her, though, since allowing Williams to gain the upper hand in the rallies could quickly turn disastrous.  Williams is definitively the better mover and therefore more adept at hitting on the run.  In addition to that, she cuts a more intimidating figure at the net, and she is going to want to get there as much as possible to keep the points short and rob Keys of time to set up for her big groundstrokes.

How successful each woman is at employing her strengths and minimizing her weaknesses is bound to be determined by how well they psychologically manage the occasion. On one hand, Williams enters this match having routinely defeated Keys the only previous time that they met, which was two years ago in Charleston.  Also, as mentioned earlier, Williams has been in this situation many more times than Keys.  But while Keys may lack the experience of Williams, she is not the one having to play with the pressure of knowing that her window as a professional is closing.  Additionally, it arguably helps Keys that Williams, instead of Agnieszka Radwanska, advanced to this stage, since Keys will have a better idea of what to expect coming off of the racquet of Williams than she would have the Pole’s.  And finally there is the fact that Lindsay Davenport, who played some memorable matches against Williams in her own professional career, is now helping to coach Keys.  She may be able to impart some useful pearls of wisdom to her young charge.

There are many intriguing variables at play in this upcoming encounter.  They have their strengths and their weaknesses.  They have their reasons for feeling confident and their reasons to doubt.  It is probably too close to call.