Roberto Bautista Agut finally reaches Australian Open quarter-finals at 10th attempt with epic five-set win over last year’s runner-up Marin Cilic
- Roberto Bautista Agut was taken five sets by Andy Murray and John Millman
- He then saw off Karen Khachanov before beating Marin Cilic to reach quarters
- 30-year-old had lost all nine of previous fourth round matches at Grand Slams
Marathon man Roberto Bautista Agut finally made the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam at the 10th attempt with a five-set win over last year’s runner-up Marin Cilic.
Bautista Agut was taken to five sets in his opening two rounds by Andy Murray and John Millman before seeing off 10th seed Karen Khachanov in straight sets.
Cilic, who was beaten by Roger Federer in the final 12 months ago, fought back from two sets to one down to force a decider but it was Bautista Agut who battled to a 6-7 (6) 6-3 6-2 4-6 6-4 victory.
Roberto Bautista Agut reached the Australian Open quarter-finals by beating Marin Cilic
The Spaniard has created a habit of winning epic five-set matches in the tournament
The 30-year-old had lost all nine of his previous fourth-round matches at the slams, including three times in Melbourne.
Bautista Agut broke Marin Cilic’s serve in the ninth game of the last set and held on to beat the 2018 runner-up.
The 22nd-seeded set up match point with a forehand that nicked the side baseline.
Last year’s runner-up Cilic was eliminated and Bautista Agut could face Roger Federer
He then clinched it when sixth-seeded Cilic hit a weak backhand that didn’t reach the net.
The Spaniard allowed the emotion to pour out of him after sealing the win and received a huge reception from the crowd.
Bautista Agut’s win in 3 hours, 58 minutes advanced the Spanish player to a quarter-final against either six-time champion Roger Federer or 20-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Bautista Agut showed again he has top level endurance to come through in almost four hours