Venus Williams is the 1/5 favourite to beat Francesca Schiavone when the two take to the court on Monday at Rod Laver Arena.

Number six seed Venus has had an easy path to the fourth round, but while she has made more headlines over the past week for her fashion rather than her tennis, the tournament gets a lot more serious from this point forward and the American faces tougher opponents, starting with Italian Schiavone.

“I don’t think about the headlines,” Venus said this week. "My whole life has been a headline, and I’ve never in my career aimed to get headlines.

"I aim to win matches. “That’s pretty much my aim here: to win matches.”

Williams of course is a former finalist in Melbourne, so she clearly knows how to win matches here. But since losing to sister Serena in 2003, she has only reached the last eight of the tournament on one more occasion.

Schiavone is 10/3 to beat Williams and reach the quarter-finals. The number 17 seed will be in confident mood after beating Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-2 in the last round. That was considered an upset given that Radwanska was seeded 10th here, but the 29-year-old looked extremely impressive.

“I feel good,” said Schiavone ahead of Monday's match. “I want to live the chance and I and try to do the best.

"She (Williams) is a champion and she is great. I need to be on my game and mix with her game, so it will be tough, for sure.”

A tough game for both women is in store on Rod Laver Arena, so the 2/1 offered by bet365 at time of writing on the game going to a third set may well be of interest.

You can watch Williams v Schiavone live for free on bet365. To watch, simply follow these 3 simple steps:
 
1. Go to bet365 and sign-up or register (it's free)
2. Click on Sports > Live Streaming > Tennis
3. Watch Williams v Schiavone for free