The headliners
No Australian man has won the Australian Open title since Mark Edmondson beat John Newcombe in an all-Aussie final back in 1976.
However, in 10th seed Alex de Minaur, the Melbourne Park crowd may feel they have a home favourite capable of enjoying a deep run at the event this year.
De Minaur went 3-1 for Australia at the United Cup around the turn of the year, posting a statement victory over Novak Djokovic at that event, and he has kept that form going at the first grand slam of 2024.
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The Australian number one swept Italian qualifier Flavio Cobolli aside for a straight-sets victory on John Cain Arena on Friday, and his reward is a headline clash with fifth seed Andrey Rublev in Sunday’s night session, with a quarter-final place at stake.
“This is where I want to be, and this is where the tail end of the tournament starts, the second week of slams,” De Minaur said.
“I’ve always been told the first week of the slam is about getting through however you want, and the second week is when you start to play your real tennis.”
RLA ❤️ PIC.TWITTER.COM/W3E1JIZHWA
— alex de minaur (@alexdeminaur) JANUARY 17, 2024
In Sunday’s day session, Djokovic continues his quest to surpass Margaret Court’s record of 24 grand slam titles when he faces France’s Adrian Mannarino.
Djokovic was taken to four sets by both Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin in his first two matches at the tournament, but he found the going far easier in the third round as he cruised past Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight sets.
Djokovic described his performance in that match as his best at Melbourne Park this year, but he faces a potential banana skin next time out against Mannarino, who downed Stan Wawrinka in the first round before overcoming 16th seed Ben Shelton in a gruelling four-hour battle on Friday.
Mannarino has lost all four of his previous tour-level meetings with Djokovic. Can he dig deep to trouble the 10-time Australian Open champion on Sunday?
The subplots
Elsewhere, two of the major contenders for the women’s crown are in action, having surely been buoyed by Iga Swiatek’s surprise elimination.
An EPIC performance 💥👏
Linda Noskova defeats World No.1 Swiatek in a three set thriller 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. She books her ticket into the fourth round! #AUSOPEN PIC.TWITTER.COM/WCXZW4UZKL
— wta (@WTA) JANUARY 20, 2024
Czech teenager Linda Noskova recovered from a set down to stun world number one Swiatek in the third round on Saturday, leaving Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff as the two favourites to clinch the title.
Defending champion Sabalenka has so far enjoyed a serene defence of her crown, only dropping six games in her three matches and crushing world number 33 Lesia Tsurenko 6-0 6-0 last time out.
She will expect another routine win when she takes to Margaret Court Arena to face Amanda Anisimova, with the American ranked a lowly 442nd in the world by the WTA.
Gauff has been almost as dominant as Sabalenka, beating Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Caroline Dolehide and Alycia Parks in straight sets to reach this stage. Poland’s Magdalena Frech is up next for the US Open champion on Sunday.
Some of the best returners of AO 2024 👇@INFOSYS • #AUSOPENWITHINFOSYS • #INFOSYSSTAT PIC.TWITTER.COM/PJQY08EKKD
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) JANUARY 20, 2024
Back on the men’s side, world number four Jannik Sinner has yet to be troubled at Melbourne Park, but his clash with 15th seed Karen Khachanov – who reached the semi-finals of the 2023 Australian Open – promises to be his sternest test yet.
Order of Play – selected matches
Day session (from 01:00 UK time)
Magdalena Frech v Coco Gauff
Taylor Fritz v Stefanos Tsitsipas
Amanda Anisimova v Aryna Sabalenka
Novak Djokovic v Adrian Mannarino
Mirra Andreeva v Barbora Krejcikova
Jannik Sinner v Karen Khachanov
Night session (from 08:00 UK time)
Alex de Minaur v Andrey Rublev
When and how to watch
The Australian Open is available to watch live on Discovery+ and Eurosport in the United Kingdom, with the day’s singles action getting under way from 01:00 UK time on Sunday morning. The night session is scheduled to take place from 08:00.
Predictions
A thrilling end to Sunday’s play could be in store as De Minaur looks to extend his longest run at his home major. He has won three of his five career meetings with Rublev and has moved well throughout this tournament, so he may be worth backing to win a close affair in five sets.
Mannarino’s third-round exertions will surely catch up with him against Djokovic, while the likes of Sabalenka, Gauff and Sinner will expect to progress.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old sensation Andreeva – who conquered Ons Jabeur earlier in the tournament – could be set to claim another scalp when she faces ninth seed Krejcikova, with a potential quarter-final against Sabalenka on the line.
✔️ Roland-Garros
✔️ Wimbledon
✔️ US Open
✔️ Australian Open16 years of age and a win at every Grand Slam already – Mirra Andreeva, everyone 👏#AusOpen PIC.TWITTER.COM/AO4RDF7GDH
— wta (@WTA) JANUARY 15, 2024
