Women's Doubles Draw | Mixed Doubles Draw

MELBOURNE - UC Davis volunteer assistant coach Raquel Atawo enjoyed two deep runs at the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam event of the year, in women's doubles and mixed doubles play.

Competing alongside Yifan Xu (CHN), Atawo and her teammate advanced to the quarterfinal round of the women's doubles draw before falling to the draw's second-seeded pairing.

Ranked No. 11 among all teams competing in Melbourne, Atawo and Xu opened action with a thrilling three-set victory over an all-Australian team comprised of Jessica Moore and Storm Sanders. After opening with a 6-4 first set win, Atawo/Xu dropped the next set, 3-6, before pulling away in the final frame to post a 6-2 set victory.

In the Second Round, Atawo/Xu battled through two tiebreakers, ultimately advancing to the Third Round thanks to their 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 6-4 triumph over Raluca Olaru (ROU) and Olga Savchuk (RUS).

The pair punched its ticket to the Quarterfinal Round by virtue of a 6-2, 6-0 straight-set victory over Chen Liang and Zhaoxuan Yang (CHN).

Atawo's stay also included play in the Open's mixed doubles bracket with partner Robert Lindstedt (SWE).

After splitting the first two sets against Andrea Hlavackova (CZE) and Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) - Atawo/Lindsted were shutout in the first frame, but rebounded to win the second set 7-6 via an 8-6 tiebreaker - Atawo's team topped the third-ranked Hlavackova/Roger-Vasselin by winning the decisive set, 10-8, in their First Round matchup.

In their following match, Atawo/Lindsted severely tested Michaella Krajicek (NED) and Ravel Klaasen (RSA), but ended their march through the mixed doubles draw with a 6-4, 6-4 loss.