Swiatek, however, broke straight back and largely cruised for the remainder of the set, despite Inglis notching two more games to raucous applause.

“From the beginning I felt quite confident,” Swiatek told reporters at Melbourne Park. “I was just playing my game and that’s it.” 

The second seed will meet Elena Rybakina, a straight-sets victor over Elise Mertens earlier on Monday, in the quarterfinals.

Swiatek marginally leads the head-to-head record 6-5 over the Kazakhstani, but she doesn’t give much credence to such stats.

“I wouldn’t say head-to-head matters,” she said.

“Every match is a different story and like on every match she’s been a tough opponent … I need to be 100 per cent ready and go for it.” 

If she progresses, the Pole would be one step closer to earning a career Grand Slam – a feat only seven other women have achieved in the Open era.

Swiatek carries significant momentum into the pointy end of the competition, joining Aryna Sabalenka as the only two women to have reached the quarterfinals at each of the last six Slams, going back to Flushing Meadows in 2024. 

The second seed’s win also means the top six women’s seeds have reached the AO quarterfinals for the first time since 1991. 

For Inglis, the Australian will take a beat before deciding on what’s next.

“I think it’s going to take a little bit of time to look back on this AO and be pretty proud of what I’ve accomplished,” she said.

“From being down match points in the first round to play on Rod Laver [Arena] today, it was a pretty crazy couple of weeks.”