Australian Open day 3: Recap all the big stories from Melbourne Park
As far as post-match interviews go, it will be tough to find a funnier one than Alexander Zverev’s exchange with Dylan Alcott.
Tennis
Don't miss out on the headlines from Tennis. Followed categories will be added to My News.
As far as post-match interviews go, this one will be hard to top in the next two weeks.
Alexander Zverev cemented his status as one of the tournament favourites with a straight sets demolition of John Millman – and then played second fiddle as his post-match interview quickly turned into Dylan Alcott’s Comedy Hour on Rod Laver Arena.
The German giant played up to the crowd, who had spent the previous two hours trying to boo him off the court, and enjoyed an easy back-and-forth with Alcott over their Tokyo gold medals and ‘skipping leg day’.
Here are the best bits.
ON PREPARING TO PLAY IN FRONT OF A HOSTILE AUSSIE CROWD
“I could really feel that you guys have been in lockdown for two years,” Zverev said.
“It was an amazing atmosphere and hopefully get even louder for the next few matches.
“I’m prepared that everybody will hate me after the match. It’s quite accurate.
“That’s my mindset, hopefully I get a lot of boos and cheers against me. (At this point the crowd boos… and then cheers).
“I’ve said the past two years since Covid started, that sport needs the atmosphere.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re for me or against me, I enjoy the atmosphere, I enjoy the noise, I enjoy being on the court in front of all you guys.
“Sports without spectators is like sport without emotions. It’s incredible we’re getting back to normal and it’s incredible playing in front of everybody.”
ON OLYMPIC GOLD
In a significant moment in the rising star’s career, Zverev won gold at the Tokyo Olympics last year – a feat which Alcott achieved in the Paralympics the following month, leading to this amusing exchange.
Alcott: You had an incredible end of last year, in particular, winning the goal at the Tokyo Olympic Games. First, welcome to the gold medal club!
Zverev: The only difference is you’ve got about four of them.
Alcott: I do, I do. You’ve got three to go, but you’ll get there…
Zverev: I’m not going to play for that long!
Alcott: “I get asked this a lot. Where do you keep it?”
Zverev: It’s actually a good question because my brother took it for a media appearance once. He’s gone! He didn’t give it back. I don’t know where it is for the past five months. Hopefully he hasn’t sold it on eBay.
Alcott: “It is on eBay. And I’ve got five now… because I just bought it”.
ON ZVEREV’S PHYSIQUE
In a quip that only the wheelchair tennis star can get away with, Alcott questioned why Zverev had done away with the tank top look he’s rocked at previous Australian Opens.
“I have been told my arms are so strong that it’s too intimidating for the opponents,” Zverev joked.
“I thought stay without it for now. But it’s definitely not retired. It will come out. Maybe for the French Open.”
But Alcott wasn’t done yet…
“Mate, I like it. Bit of advice - skip leg day. Overrated! Please give it up for Alexander Zverev!”
SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE LATEST NEWS
9:55PM: MILLMAN IS TROUBLE AGAINST ZVEREV
It has been a tough night at the office for Aussie fighter John Millman.
The hometown hope is down a set and a break to number three seed Alexander Zverev.
Millman was broken early in the first set and has struggled to get back into the match, with Zverev crushing winners off both sides of the court.
The crowd is doing its best to rally around Millman. Can they lift him?
8:35PM: OSAKA MOVES STEP CLOSER TO ASH CLASH
Naomi Osaka stepped up the defence of her Australian Open title with a composed beating of Madison Brengle to move a step closer to a blockbuster clash with top seed Ash Barty.
The Japanese 13th seed raced through the first set but had to work hard in the second on Rod Laver Arena before eliminating the 54th-ranked American 6-0, 6-4 in 65 minutes to make the third round.
She will meet another unseeded American next after Amanda Anisimova upset Tokyo Olympic champion and 22nd seed Belinda Bencic 6-2, 7-5.
Anisimova is on a seven-match win streak after claiming the Melbourne Summer Set title in the build-up to the Grand Slam and should pose a sterner test.
But if Osaka can win she faces the prospect of a mouth-watering fourth round battle with world number one and Wimbledon champion Barty, who has dropped just three games so far and looks in ominous touch.
8:10PM AUS OPEN STAR TESTS POSITIVE TO COVID
Australian Open participant Ugo Humbert has tested positive to Covid.
Humbert played his opening round singles clash on Tuesday, losing to Richard Gasquet in a tight four-set match.
The 23-year-old took an “exit test” after his match, which returned a positive result.
In a statement on this Instagram, Humbert wrote:
“I was tested positive on my exit test yesterday and I’ll stay one more week in isolation in Australia. Thanks for your support and see you soon.”
Gasquet is scheduled to play his second round match on Thursday afternoon.
8:00PM AUSSIE WILDCARD OUT OF OPEN
Local wildcard Aleks Vukic’s Australian Open is over after a straight-sets second-round defeat to Moldovan qualifier Radu Albot on Wednesday night.
Vukic was left to rue a slew of break points he failed to convert in the second set as he went down 6-4 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in two hours and 16 minutes.
The world No.144 never recovered after dumping a forehand into the net on the opening point of the tiebreak, before missing several returns that meant Albot avoided maximum pressure.
Albot was in sight of victory when a shanked Vukic shot gave him a 3-1 lead in the third set.
But the Sydneysider, 25, broke back in the seventh game and threatened to mount a comeback, only to commit three-straight errors three games later to concede the contest.
The loss brings an end to a breakout summer for Vukic, who reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final in Adelaide and won his maiden grand slam match on Monday.
- Marc McGowan
7:34PM: OSAKA’S INCREDIBLE OPEN SMACKDOWN
A 6-0 score line is usually a pretty clear indication as to how a set played out.
But the stats around Naomi Osaka and Madison Brengle really are crazy reading.
The two-time Austrlaian Open champion was utterly dominant in the opening set, not giving up a point on her first serve and crashing 13 huge winners.
By contrast, Brengle had to wait until the early stages of the second set to hit her first winner.
STAR’S SPECTACULAR $67,000 SELFIE FAIL
Corentin Moutet is a quirky customer.
The Frenchman delivered one of the better meltdowns of the Australian Open last year when he flew into a rage after losing a point to Australia’s John Millman.
But on Wednesday, he was perhaps too friendly when he went down in an epic five-setter to American Sebastian Korda.
After saving two match points and forcing a fifth-set tiebreaker, Moutet went to towel off and prepare for a $67,000 tiebreaker.
But fans are especially close to the action on Court 8, and one decided to shoot his shot at the most inappropriate time and ask Moutet for a selfie.
Of course, where most would try to clear their minds and come up with a strategy for a tiebreak that could deliver a 3rd round birth and guaranteed $221,000 payday, Moutet obliged and flashed his pearly whites.
The move backfired, with Korda taking the tiebreak 10-6 to advance, while Moutet suffered fell in the second round – just as he did last year.
6:40: ‘LOVE TO LOOK LIKE YOU’: RAFA’S INTERVIEW BURN
Rafael Nadal is through to the third round of the Australian Open after a crushing three set win over world number 126 Yannick Hanfmann.
However, it was the superstar Spaniard’s post-match interview which was the real highlight of the match.
It turns out Nadal is just like the rest of us. He doesn’t like the gym and is hoping to age gracefully.
Chatting to Jim Courier on Channel 9, Nadal was asked:
“When you’re retired, are you going to do the workouts or do you just want to sit on your boat and go fishing and play golf?
“What’s the plan in, like, 10 years when you retire?”
His response had the Rod Laver Arena crowd in stitches.
“I’m not a guy that love the gym, I love to be just at home watching the TV. I have an
academy to take care about, a foundation to take care about, and of course, you look great, so I would love to look like you...at your age.”
6:25PM VUKIC’S TOUGH START TO ROUND 2 CLASH
It’s been a tough start to life in Round 2 for Aussie Aleksandar Vukic, who has dropped the first set in his match with Radu Albot.
Vukic went down 6-4 after being broken early in the clash.
Ranked 124 in the world, Vukic shocked the world when he knocked out the 30th seed Lloyd Harris in round 1.
6:00PM: PLAYERS URGE PENG SHUAI TO GET IN TOUCH
Women’s tennis needs to hear directly from Peng Shuai to know that she is safe, two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka said Wednesday, as fears persist for China’s former world number one doubles player.
Previous Wimbledon and French Open doubles champion Peng alleged on social media in November that former Chinese vice-premier Zhang Gaoli forced her into sex during a long-term on-off relationship.
However, her online post was deleted and her claims censored, then she disappeared from public, only to reappear three weeks later.
Despite this and a video call with IOC president Thomas Bach, there remain doubts about how free the 36-year-old Peng really is.
Azarenka, a long-time member of the WTA Players’ Council, said efforts were still being made to ensure Peng was safe.
“There hasn’t been that much development in terms of contact with Peng Shuai even though from our side we will continue to make any and all efforts to make sure that she is safe, she feels comfortable,” she said at the Australian Open.
“Hopefully we will get to hear from her personally at some point. I think that’s the goal, the main goal right now.”
5PM: STAR BACKS TENNIS VACCINE MANDATES
Former Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka has backed a harder stance when it comes to vaccinations on the Tour.
Azarenka is a member of the WTA players’ council, which is currently working through the latest issues for dealing with Covid.
The former world number one said there was a lot of work to do but she believes it would be “helpful for everybody” if the Tour looked at a vaccine mandate.
Azarenka was vocal about the issue at the US Open, where fans had to be vaccinated but players didn’t.
“From my standpoint it’s been very clear. I believe in science. I believe in getting vaccinated. That’s what I did for myself,” she said after her second round match.
“I don’t want to push my beliefs on everybody else. However, we are playing a global sport that are traveling around the world.
“As an entity, as an association of WTA, that is traveling globally, we still have to respect countries, different countries, different mandates, different legalities of the country.
“Some countries will not allow mandates. I think to impose something legally on the WTA Tour can be a challenge. I think that’s something that we are facing.
“I believe that spending a lot of extra money over this last almost two years now on all the testing, that is a big budget.
“I won’t necessarily say that getting vaccinated, then nobody will be sick, but I think it is a step to hopefully battle against this coronavirus, hopefully bring it down globally.
“But to make it as a mandate, there is much more to it.
“If you ask me just for my opinion if that should be the case, I think it would just be helpful for everybody in the world, especially when we are traveling internationally.”
4:31PM: STAR STUNS WITH UNORTHODOX SHOT
We had to check the rule book on this one after Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta smacked a big return from the wrong side of the net.
Racing to the net in his second round clash with Tallon Griekspoor, Busta actually crosses to the other side before hitting his return.
He won the point, and we dragged our collective jaws off the floor.
4:13PM KYRGIOS TO PLAY ON RLA
Nick Kyrgios has been taken off “The Kyrgios Court” with a Rod Laver Arena showdown locked in with the world No. 2.
The Australian star is set to face off with Australian Open favourite Daniil Medvedev in the first match of the night session on Thursday night with tournament organisers shifting him off his favourite John Cain Arena in favour of the grand slam’s showpiece stadium.
Kyrgios had said it would be “fun” to play the match on what has become a home deck for him, but knew that Rod Laver Arena was going to be the likely destination for what is arguably the most mouth-watering clash of the tournament so far.
“Obviously either way it’s going to be a hell of an experience for me,” he said.
You know, he’s probably the best player in the world at the moment. So I’m pretty excited, I’m excited for that moment. That’s why I play the game.
“I feel like those matches still excite me, to go out there and play the best in the world. That was always something I wanted to prove to people that someone like me could do, win those matches. I’m not going to go into it with a lot of expectation. I’m going to go out there, have some fun, play my game. I have a pretty set-in-stone game plan of what I need to do to have success.
“He’s probably the best player in the world, he does everything extremely well. He’s a hard worker, ticks all the boxes.”
Australian Alex De Minaur will play in the afternoon on Rod Laver Arena, while fellow Aussie Madison Inglis and Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas will headline on Margaret Court Arena.
-Lauren Wood
NASTY INJURY
Horrible scenes from Margaret Court Arena where Harmony Tan was taken from the court in a wheelchair after being forced to retire from her match.
The Frenchwoman was in all sorts of trouble towards the end of her clash against 15th seed Elina Svitolina and eventually called time as the Ukrainian was serving for the match.
Early reports suggest Tan has sustained a nasty injury to her calf.
Svitolina will face Victoria Azarenka in the third round.
ASH BARTY INTO THIRD ROUND
Ash Barty is in demolition mode.
The world No 1 took just 52 minutes to secure her spot in the third round of the Australian Open where Italian Camila Giorgi awaits.
Playing in the heat - her preferred condition - Barty dropped just two games against Italia Lucia Bronzetti.
It means the Australian superstar has lost just three games and dropped no sets so far this tournament.
It’s First Nations Day at the Open and the scene was perfectly set for Barty as she looks to add to her French Open and Wimbledon slam titles.
In her on court interview, Barty paid tribute to Evonne Goolagong Cawley.
“She’s an incredible human being,” Barty said.
“I’m extremely lucky to call her a friend and know she’s only a phone call away.
“We’re connected through our heritage. She’s an incredible woman and paved a path and been able to guide so many of the indigenous youth coming up in the last however many years throughout her work off the court. I love her to death.”
1:20pm WOMEN’S RESULT
Elina Svitolina is through to the third round after her opponent Tan was forced to retire when facing match point. Looked like a nasty calf injury.
Svitolina won’t be walking into round 4 though, she’s got a tough test next in the form of Azarenka.
1:05PM THIS WILL BE WRAPPED UP NICE AND FAST....
“In full control” says Sam Smith about the fact Barty is 5-0 in the first set after 19 minutes.
Not gonna lie you’ve got to feel sorry for the Italian on the other side of the net who has never played on a court like RLA, never mind in front of a home crowd.
Dare I say this is a little boring?
12:44pm GREATEST SHOW OF CLASS
In one of the greatest shows of sportsmanship we have seen this Australian Open, Roman Safiullin rushed to help his opponent who had just collapsed, despite losing their clash.
In the final stages of his first round, Alex Molcan was barely able to walk due to agonising cramps.
When he finally - and miraculously - claimed victory, he collapsed to the gorund and was unable to get to his feet.
In a beautiful display of camradarie, Safiullin - a Lucky Loser who replaced eighth seed Casper Ruud at the last miute - ran to his rival’s aid.
While Safiulling was widely praised for his actions, Molcan was annoyed with himself.
“I am relieved, it feels amazing of course, the pain was almost unbearable,” he said afterwards.
“I couldn’t move I don’t know how I moved. I had cramps in both legs but somehow I managed to run.
“I made a mistake, I was running stupid on some points, it killed me.”
Safiullin helps Molcan on his feet after match point. Wild ending.#AusOpenpic.twitter.com/2SdLSGjmAl
— Tennis GIFs 🎾🎥 (@tennis_gifs) January 18, 2022
12:34PM BARTY UP NEXT
So good to see Paula Badosa back in form. She contracted Covid just before last year’s tournament before having a ripper 2021. One to watch as we look towards the middle rounds.
She won 6-0, 6-3 while over on Kia Arena, Victoria Azarenka has secured her third round spot with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jil Teichmann.
12:03pm FLYING ACTION
No time to waste it seems this morning. Paula Badosa is a set up as are Svitolina, Giorgi and Azarenka after little over an hour on court.
Barty follows Badosa this afternoon.
11:40am MURRAY RIPS CH9
Former world No1 Andy Murray was left fuming after Channel 9 opted not to show Emma Raducanu’s first round match against Sloane Stephens.Murray was enjoying some well earned down time after an epic five-set win in the first round of the Australian Open.
He beat No21 seed Nikoloz Basilshvili in a four-hour epic to record his first win at the tournament in five years.
And he would have been looking forward to getting back in time to tune in for fellow Brit Raducanu’s first round game against Stephens.
The only problem was Australian TV wasn’t showing the clash, much to the annoyance of the two-time Wimbledon champion.
Murray vented his frustration on Twitter, writing: “Come on channel 9 let’s get raducanu [vs] stephens on one [of] the channels instead of 2x Rod Laver!”
The 34-year-old missed out on a good game too, as the 2021 US Open champ Raducanu beat Stevens 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 in a high quality encounter.
Teen sensation Raducanu breezed through the first set in 17 minutes without losing a game, but was humbled 6-2 in the second by Stephens.
10:22am SHOES MAKE A STATEMENT
He may have lost to Nick Kyrgios in the opening round but Liam Broady left an important message at Melbourne Park.
This is a sport for everyone.
In the absence of any openly gay players in the men’s tour, Broady said it was important that he, and others, did whatever they could to highlight the importance of inclusivity.
So in a show of support to the LGBTQ+ community, Broady wore rainbow laces for his blockbuster clash against the Aussie superstar on John Cain Arena.
Afterwards he said: “I just kind of wanted to send the support.
“I know obviously within men’s tennis - is it a taboo? I don’t think it’s really a taboo, but I’ve seen questions before about why there aren’t any openly gay men on the tour, and I just wanted to kind of voice my support in that general area.
“And the LGBTQ community, I mean, a lot of those guys have given me a lot of support throughout my career and have been there since day one, so I kind of wanted to give a thank you in my own sort of way.”
Broady was then asked if he felt tennis was a sport with a culture preventing players from being open about their sexuality. To which he said: “I don’t think so. I guess the society we live in there’s a culture like that, right? Especially in sport.”
The British qualifier also made mention of A League player Josh Cavallo who has suffered online trolling and abuse since coming out last year.
“I saw that the first openly gay footballer just came out in Australia. And it’s difficult, right? I mean it’s a big thing to do and at the end of the day in the 21st century, it’s pretty rubbish that people don’t feel like they can be openly gay. It’s quite sad, really.
“If there are people in the locker rooms and you kind of... you don’t want to force them to come out, you know, especially if they don’t want to. It’s their choice.”
9:25am WHO IS ON TODAY
Rafael Nadal steps up his march towards a record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open on Wednesday, with Ashleigh Barty and Naomi Osaka also taking centre stage.
Defending champion Osaka and Wimbledon winner Barty will be one victory away from colliding if both come through their second-round encounters unscathed.
Japan’s Osaka, who has won two Australian and two US Opens, faces American Madison Brengle in the night session on Rod Laver Arena.
Red-hot Barty, the top seed and home hope, comes up against Italian qualifier Lucia Bronzetti in an early afternoon encounter.
Nadal, who recently won his first tournament after five months out battling a foot injury, was highly impressive in racing past American Marcos Giron in straight sets on Monday to open his campaign.
“I am super-happy about all the work that we have done to try to be back. We are here enjoying the tennis,” said the Spanish sixth seed, who will face German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann after Barty’s match ends.
Nadal’s half of the draw was made easier when the unvaccinated nine-time champion Novak Djokovic was thrown out of Australia.
8:35am NICK BEER-IOS
Nick Kyrgios was in outstanding form on all fronts in his Australian Open first round win. Trick shots, sledges and a cheeky crowd celebration at the end.
The Aussie superstar claimed a straight sets victory on John Cain Arena against British qualifier Liam Broady.
And the entire match was vintage Nick from start to finish.
Trick shots, sledges, non-stop entertainment and a cheeky beer to celebrate.
Check it out below.
7:15am GOOD MORNING
It’s day 3 and there’s so much to talk about. First up. Kyrgios and the Djoker bromance.
Djokovic may be public enemy number one to many in Melbourne but he has found an unlikely ally in Kyrgios -- and now the Australian wants them to play doubles.
The combustible Kyrgios once famously labelled the men’s world number one “a tool” but he surprisingly raced to Djokovic’s defence over the past week as the unvaccinated Serbian fought against deportation from Australia.
Djokovic failed and is now back home, but the 26-year-old Kyrgios hopes they can develop their newfound fondness for one another somewhere down the line.
Kyrgios has even won fans in Serbia because of his support for Djokovic -- Serbian player Dusan Lajovic jokingly called him “Nick the Serb” on Monday.
“Obviously me and Novak have had some, I guess, differences in the past,” Kyrgios said after victory in the first round on Tuesday at the Australian Open.
“But, I mean, whether it was Novak or someone else, I would have done the same thing.
“I didn’t do it because he was Serbian. If it was another player in that scenario, I would have stood up for what I think was right.”
Originally published as Australian Open day 3: Recap all the big stories from Melbourne Park
Aussie Ajla ends winning drought
There are now two Aussie women in the world’s top 100 after Ajla Tomljanovic snared a title in Hong Kong.
Tennis world floored by ‘chilling’ Dokic reveal
Australian tennis champion Jelena Dokic has a new documentary out and fans have labelled the glimpse into her career raw and chilling.