World No. 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner makes a strong comeback to reach the third round of the Australian Open, where Iga Swiatek takes on Emma Raducanu duel.
Sinner lost his first match to Australian wildcard Tristan Scukett, his first loss of a set in 14 matches, but he won 4-6, 6-4 after a slow start. A 6-1, 6-3 victory over Australia took back control. The 173rd-ranked player in the world took to the cooler air at Rod Laver Arena on Thursday.
It was Sinner's 16th consecutive victory, which bodes ill for his next opponent, Marcos Giron.
"It's always difficult to play against someone I don't know very well. He played much better than me at the beginning," said the 23-year-old Italian, who also won the U.S. Open last year.
In the night match, last year's runner-up Daniil Medvedev was knocked out by 19-year-old American qualifier Learn Tien, causing a huge shock in Melbourne.
Tian Junjie, ranked 121st, defeated the world No. 5 with a score of 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (8/10), 1-6, 7-6 (10/7) The player will face French player Corentin Moutet in the next round of the Australian Open.
In the women's draw, Swiatek beat world No. 49 Rebecca Slamkova 6-0, 6-2, while Britain's Raduckanu defeated 6-3, 7 at Melbourne Park. -5 defeated Amanda Anisimova and entered the third round for the first time.
"It's definitely going to be a tough match," world No. 2 Swiatek, a five-time Grand Slam winner but never a Melbourne champion, said as he sized up Raducanu.
Sixth seed and former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina beat American wild card Iva Jovic in straight sets.
Emma Navarro, the eighth seed from the United States, will next face Ons Jabr. She defeated the 108th-ranked Chinese player Wang Xiyu in three sets.
Fourth seed Jasmine Paolini will face Mexico's Renata Sarasua in the final match.
Djokovic, Alcaraz and the women's No. 1 defending champion Aryna Sabalenka all performed well in Friday's match.
The same goes for Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka, who will meet in the next round if both win.
