NOVAK "Joker" Djokovic is one of the raging favourites to take out the Grand Slam this year and will take on Andrey Rublev in the quarter-final tomorrow night at Rod Laver Arena.
(Reuters)
After two COVID-affected years, the Australian Open is back in full swing. Record numbers have attended the first week of the competition, with over 500,000 people entering the gates at Melbourne Park. On the court, the tournament has provided more than its fair share of upsets, with a wide array of seeded players being knocked out early. Here is a recap of week one:
Day 1:
Nick Kyrgios sent the tabloids into a frenzy after he withdrew due to a knee injury. The 27-year-old is set to have surgery on Monday as an MRI showed a cyst along with a slight lateral meniscus tear. He is expected to return for Indian Wells in March.
Although the highest-ranked Australian is out, some other names stood up as four Aussies made the second round. Veteran, John Millman was down two sets to one before he stormed home to knock out Swiss player, Marc-Andrea Husler. Lasting four hours and five minutes, the match was the first five-setter Millman has won since the first round of Wimbledon in 2016. 21-year-old wildcard Rinky Hijikata pulled off an even greater comeback when he won the final three sets to beat qualifier Yannick Hanfmann 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3. Millman and Hijikata will face tougher opponents next in Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas respectively. Both Medvedev and Tsitsipas cruised past their opponents winning in straight sets. In other Aussie highlights, Jason Kubler and Olivia Gadecki reached new heights, winning their opening round matches in Melbourne for the first time. Gadecki’s victory was made extra special as it was her first grand slam win of her career.
Top seed, Rafael Nadal survived a major scare after he advanced to the second round 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 against world number 40, Jack Draper. Known for defeating the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Dominic Thiem, Draper looked destined to claim another scalp when he won the second set 6-2. However, the 22-time grand slam winner played arguably the worst match of his career, making uncharacteristic errors. Nearly becoming the first defending champion to lose in the first round since Boris Becker in 1997, Nadal hit 46 unforced errors. The Spaniard ultimately found his groove, taking the final two sets 6-4, 6-1. He will play American Mackenzie McDonald on Wednesday.
Iga Swiatek marches onto the second round after a straight sets victory against Germany's Julie Niemeier 6-4, 7-5. Despite being down an early break in the second, the world number one saved a set point, en route to the next round. Swiatek is now 15-1 in grand slam first round matches. Colombian Camila Osorio awaits.
Jessica Pegula made light work of her opponent, winning 6-0, 6-1. Coco Gauff sets up a mouth-watering encounter with 2021 US Open champion, Emma Raducanu after her straight sets win over Katerina Siniakova. Meanwhile world number six, Maria Sakkari comfortably got past Yuan Yue from China.
Day 2:
Typical Melbourne conditions hampered the competition on Tuesday. With temperatures rising to as high as 37.2 degrees at 4:40pm, play was temporarily suspended on the outside courts for almost three hours. Later into the night, stormy weather hit Melbourne Park, not allowing play to flow properly. Eventually, the outside courts would be closed for the night, as 22 singles matches have been rescheduled for Wednesday.
Thanasi Kokkinakis will look to get off KIA Arena as quickly as possible, needing only five points to make the second round. Kokkinakis never let Fabio Fognini into the game, dominating on all cylinders. If the Aussie can finish it off, he will face former world number one, Andy Murray on Thursday.
Murray was involved in an early contender for match of the tournament, holding off a valiant fightback from 13th seed, Matteo Berrettini to produce a major upset. Berrettini was two sets down before forcing a deciding set, in a near five-hour epic. Taken to a super tiebreak, Murray had a commendable lead early before Berrettini fought back to reduce the lead to two points. A lucky bounce off the net would seal Murray’s fate, in a bittersweet moment for the five-time finalist.
Australian wildcard, Kimberley Birrell produced an upset of her own in a brilliant fightback victory over the 31st seed, Kaia Kanepi on KIA Arena. Birrell lost the first set 6-3, before turning the tide to advance to the second round.
Alex De Minaur waltzed into the round of 64 in a straight sets victory over Yu Hsiou Hsu. The world number 24 had the foot on the pedal from start to finish, en-route to a 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 win. Alexei Popyrin and Chun-Hsin Tseng felt the ramifications of the extreme weather contingencies, after their five-set thriller finished at 2:03am. Moved to John Cain Arena at the eleventh hour, Popyrin stormed home to take out the encounter 4-6, 7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 6-1.
One of the favourites in the women’s draw, Aryna Sabalenka got through with ease, defeating Tereza Martincova 6-1, 6-4. The fifth seed will now set her sights on America's Shelby Rogers. Belgian, Elise Mertens got through a brutal first round match up against former world number one, Garbine Muguruza 3-6, 7-6, 6-1. After a late break in the second set, Mertens returned serve on her way to victory.
Novak Djokovic showed no sign of slowing down in his opening bout with Spaniard, Roberto Carballes Baena. The nine-time Australian Open champion finished his match in two hours and two minutes, winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-0. This marked Djokovic’s 35th consecutive win in Australia. It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Alexander Zverev who survived a major scare in his first-round match against lucky loser, Juan Pablo Varillas, with the match going the distance. The 12th seed was down two sets to one before a fight back saw Zverev march on to the next round.
Second seed, Ons Jabeur also survived a huge scare, eventually winning in three sets against Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia. Winning the first set in a tiebreak and losing the second 6-4, the Tunisian came home strong in the final set to take it out 6-1.
Day 3:
In another rain-affected day, there was plenty of drama on the main courts. The men’s defending champion has bowed out after a straight sets loss to American, Mackenzie McDonald, in what could be his last trip to Melbourne. Injury problems crippled Nadal once again, seeking medical treatment for a hip injury sustained in the second set. This marks the second time McDonald has defeated a top 10 player, while for Nadal, this becomes the earliest exit for a reigning Grand Slam winner since Novak Djokovic at the 2017 Australian Open.
Another upset was brewed on the outside courts when play returned on Wednesday night. Women’s eighth seed, Daria Kasatkina was obliterated by the 100th ranked player in the world, Varvara Gracheva. Losing 6-1, 6-1 within 54 minutes, Kasatkina has been knocked out in the first round for the second time in a row at a Grand Slam.
Thanasi Kokkinakis finally completed his match against Fabio Fognini, only needing three minutes to claim the final five points. This sets up an enticing battle with Andy Murray at Margaret Court Arena on Thursday night.
Daniil Medvedev advanced to the third round for the fifth consecutive year, taking down Aussie, John Millman 7-5, 6-2, 6-2. In a dominating display, the world number eight hit ten aces to nil, finishing the match in two hours and 19 minutes. Stefanos Tsitsipas had an easy night on the court, beating Aussie wildcard, Rinky Hijikata 6-3, 6-0, 6-2 on centre court. In what has been the shortest men’s match of the tournament, Hijikata only won five games in the 92-minute encounter.
Karen Khachanov and Jason Kubler locked horns on John Cain Arena, so much so, they produced one of the longest Grand Slam rallies in history with 70 strokes. Kubler might have won the battle, but Khachanov won the war, progressing to the third round in four sets.
Sixth seed, Felix Auger-Aliassime needed all five sets to put away Alex Molcan after being two sets to love down. The Canadian was able to hold his service games in the remaining three sets, winning 93 per cent of his first serves, compared to 76 per cent in the opening two sets. He faces 28th seed, Francisco Cerundolo on Friday.
From one sixth seed to another, Maria Sakkari went the distance with qualifier Diana Shnaider. Beaten all ends up throughout the match, Sakkari got crucial points when she needed, advancing to the third round.
Aus Open favourite, Iga Swiatek continued on her winning ways, defeating Colombian Camila Osorio 6-2, 6-3. The world number one has now won her last 10 Grand Slam matches and is looking to win her first Australian Open. American, Coco Gauff marched onto the next round after defeating former world number 10, Emma Raducanu in straight sets. In a highly anticipated match, the seventh seed cruised to victory, despite a late fightback. She sets up a third-round encounter with fellow countrymen Bernarda Pera.
Day 4:
Day four provided many headlines, but none had more magnitude than the second-round clash between Thanasi Kokkinakis and Andy Murray. In one of the all-time great Grand Slam matches, the three-time Australian Open champion came back from two sets down to prevail, in a five-hour, 45-minute marathon which lasted until 4:05am. Kokkinakis broke Murray three times in the third set, given two opportunities to serve out the match, however a controversial time violation on his serve riled the Australian up, allowing the Brit back into the match. Murray will play Roberto Bautista-Agut on Saturday in a rematch of the 2019 first round bout that saw Murray eliminated in five sets.
For the first time since 2001, an unseeded Aussie defeated a top 10 player at the Australian Open. Wildcard, Alexei Popyrin produced one of the biggest wins of his career defeating world number nine, Taylor Fritz, in a four-hour, five-set epic. In a match that saw three tiebreakers, it was difficult to break serve, with only three break points won in the first four sets. Popyrin and Fritz split the opening two sets, before the Aussie managed a break in the third which helped to decide the set. After what seemed to be a turning point in the match, Fritz held his nerve, saving a match point to force a decider. However, it was déjà vu for the world number 120, who stormed home in the final set to advance to the third round at a grand slam for just the fifth time. The 23-year-old won 94 per cent of his first serves, while securing a double break, on his way to a match against another American in Ben Shelton.
In a day of upsets, Ons Jabeur was knocked out by unseeded Czech player, Marketa Vondrousova which went three sets. The match was bookended by 6-1 sets in favour of Vondrousova to claim victory in what was one of the shocks of the competition. Alexander Zverev also unexpectedly crashed out of the tournament, losing in four sets to lucky loser, Michael Mmoh 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. The loss is good news for Alexei Popyrin who has an unimpeded run to the quarter finals in terms of seeded players.
The race for the coveted world number one ranking is now down to two after Casper Ruud was eliminated on Thursday. Ruud was beaten in four sets by unseeded American, Jenson Brooksby. The world number three saved three match points, before Brooksby capitalised, setting up an all-American showdown with Tommy Paul. It is the first time since the 2002 Australian Open that the top two seeds in the men’s draw have been eliminated before the third round.
One of the men still in the hunt for the top spot on the ATP rankings is Novak Djokovic who advanced after a win against Frenchmen, Enzo Couacaud. The three-hour match provided the fourth seed with its challenges, aggravating his troublesome hamstring. After comfortably taking the opening set 6-1, Djokovic called for a medical timeout. Couacaud would then take out the second set in a tiebreak, before the nine-time Australian Open champion took out the final two sets 6-2, 6-0. He will face Grigor Dimitrov on super Saturday.
Alex De Minaur was also challenged in his round two match, eventually winning the match in four sets. The 'demon' claimed the first set in a tiebreak, but was broken by Mannarino, en route to dropping the second set. Despite being down a break in the third, the Aussie found another gear to take a 2-1 lead, before rallying home.
Fifth seed, Aryna Sabalenka had no troubles in her second-round match against Shelby Rogers, winning 6-3, 6-1. The victory sets up an intriguing encounter with Elise Mertens who also defeated an American in Lauren Davis.
Day 5:
2022 finalist, Daniil Medvedev and women’s sixth seed, Maria Sakkari were the latest big names to depart Melbourne Park earlier than expected, following their shock losses. Medvedev was favoured to win the tournament given his impeccable form throughout, although this came to an end when he lost to 29th seed, Sebastian Korda 7-6, 6-3, 7-6. The son of 1998 Australian Open winner Petr, Korda won 50 winners to 28, in a dominant performance. Korda will play 10th seed, Hubert Hurkacz on Sunday. Maria Sakkari was also knocked out of the competition after her three-set loss to Lin Zhu at Margaret Court Arena. Zhu claimed a crucial first set which went to a tiebreak, before Sakkari outplayed her opponent to take the second 6-1. The world number 84 remained composed though to defeat a top 10 player for the first time, taking out the deciding set 6-4.
Iga Swiatek continued her stellar form, breezing past Spanish qualifier, Cristina Bucsa 6-0, 6-1. Down 5-0 in the second set, Bucsa picked up a game off her serve to avoid the dreaded double bagel. The world number one will face a tougher opponent on Sunday in Wimbledon winner, Elena Rybakina.
Americans, Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff advanced to the round of 16 with ease, making light work of their opponents. Pegula got the better of Ukrainian, Maria Kostyuk 6-0, 6-2, while Gauff had no troubles against fellow American, Bernarda Pera winning 6-3, 6-2.
The resurgence of two-time Australian Open champion, Victoria Azarenka has gained more traction after defeating tenth seed, Madison Keys in three sets. Keys took out the first set 6-1, thanks to a 14-2 obliteration in the winners column. However, it was all Azarenka after that, claiming the last two sets 6-2, 6-1 to advance to the fourth round.
World number 16, Jannik Sinner was forced to rally from two sets down to overcome qualifier, Marton Fucsovics. The Hungarian was able to win the long rallies in the opening two sets, giving him a healthy lead. However, Sinner was able to flip the script in the final three sets, preventing the long rallies from happening. He will now face Stefanos Tsitsipas in a rematch of their 2022 Australian Open quarter-final.
Karen Khachanov has progressed to the final 16 in a highly entertaining encounter with 16th seed, Frances Tiafoe at John Cain Arena. Khachanov had control of the first two sets, using his powerful serve to avoid being broken. The Russian saved five out of six break points in the opening two sets to take a comfortable lead. Tiafoe changed his game plan in the third set, forcing Khachanov to come to the net, keeping the American in the match. Despite having a 6-1 lead in the fourth-set tiebreak, the 18th seed saved six set points to keep his Aus Open run alive.
Day 6:
Alex De Minaur has advanced to the round of 16 for the second consecutive year after a straight sets victory over Frenchman, Benjamin Bonzi. The Aussie got a break in the seventh game of the first set, before Bonzi found a break late to keep himself in the set. However, this would be the last sign of competition for De Minaur, who took out the tiebreak to love, before winning the last two sets 6-2, 6-1 respectively. Alexei Popyrin’s loss to America's Ben Shelton means that De Minaur is the last remaining Aussie in the tournament. The 22nd seed faces Novak Djokovic on Monday who defeated Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets.
Andy Murray’s dream run is over after a four-set loss to rival, Roberto Bautista Agut at Margaret Court Arena. It was déjà vu for the Spaniard who sent Murray packing in the first round of the 2019 Australian Open. Bautista Agut claimed the first set in 29 minutes, after a seven-game annihilation. The former world number one found his groove in the second set, levelling the match in a tiebreak. Although the 11-time ATP title winner turned his powerful ground strokes into winners, taking out the final two sets 6-3, 6-4. He has a good chance of making a maiden semi-final, should he defeat Tommy Paul on Monday.
On the women’s side of the draw, fifth seed, Aryna Sabalenka continues to power her way through to a first Grand Slam final after beating Elise Mertens 6-2, 6-3. The win means that Sabalenka is yet to lose a set so far during this tournament. She can go as high as the world number two if she wins the Daphne Akhurst Trophy. Also, Caroline Garcia and Belinda Bencic advanced to the next round.
Day 7:
The dominos keep falling in the Australian Open as women’s favourites, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff are out before the quarter-finals. Swiatek’s loss marks the first time in the Open era that neither of the top two seeds in the men’s or womens' draw has advanced to the quarter-finals. Losing to reigning Wimbledon champion, Elena Rybakina 6-4, 6-4, it is the first straight-sets loss the Polish star has had at a Grand Slam since the third round of Wimbledon last year. Rybakina will now face Jelena Ostapenko in the final eight after she knocked out Gauff in straight sets. This ends an unbeaten run for the American in 2023. Jessica Pegula and Victoria Azarenka also won their respective matches, meaning that the practice partners will face each other on Tuesday night at Rod Laver Arena.
Stefanos Tsitsipas held on to defeat Jannik Sinner on Sunday night. Tsitsipas had the match on his terms, going two sets up within 90 minutes, before Sinner put together a fightback reminiscent of his match on Friday against Fucsovics. The fourth seed would however remain composed to take out the last set 6-3, en route to a Tuesday night match with Jiri Lehecka who knocked out the third seed of the tournament. The Czech player had never won a Grand Slam match before the Australian Open, and has since made his first quarter-final, knocking out Cameron Norrie and Felix Auger-Aliassime in his last two matches.
American, Sebastian Korda has made the quarter finals for the first time at a Grand Slam after defeating the world number 11, Hubert Hurkacz in an incredible five-setter. Although the first four sets were relatively quick, the fifth set did not disappoint. A super tiebreak to decide the match had everyone on the edge of their seat, as the 22-year-old booked a date with Karen Khachanov.
Khachanov almost became the first player since Sergei Bruguera at the 1993 French Open to get a triple bagel at a Grand Slam in his victory against Yoshihito Nishioka. The Tokyo silver medallist had a double bagel, but the following set was taken to a tiebreak.
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