World number one and defending Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber has lost her quarter-final match at the Brisbane International, falling in three sets to Ukrainian sixth seed Elina Svitolina on Pat Rafter Arena.
In an upset that doesn't bode well for her hopes of defending at Melbourne Park, Kerber looked flat at times against the 22-year-old Ukrainian world number 14, losing 6-4 3-6 6-3.
![Upset: Angelique Kerber.](/web/20170108062330im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/m/4/e/r/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtmq1y.png/1483619035889.jpg)
Kerber, who won both the Australian and US Opens last year, looked as if she had regained control of the match in the third set and most expected her to see it out and progress to the semis.
Instead, Svitolina came back from a break down to seal a confidence-boosting result after almost two hours of tennis. She will meet Karolina Pliskova in the semi-finals.
![Elina Svitolina celebrates after winning her quarter-final match against Angelique Kerber.](/web/20170108062330im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/m/q/h/9/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.gtmq1y.png/1483619035889.jpg)
Svitolina said she had felt relaxed before the match and all of the expectation was on her opponent, who had spoken before the tournament about the burden of carrying the number one mantle, which she claimed from Serena Williams after the US Open.
"No pressure. I was just trying to focus on my game because Angie was playing really well. She had a terrific year last year and is very confident. I was just trying to fight for every ball," Svitolina said.
Kerber said she was remaining upbeat ahead of Melbourne in what was a match of good quality in a highly competitive women's draw in Brisbane.
"It's always tough against her. Today I lost but I'm feeling not bad. I'll take the positives from this," Kerber said. "We both played at a high level... she's always moving good. I made a few more mistakes."
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