Australian Open 2022: Follow the latest results and all the Aussies at Melbourne Park

Only Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic have done what Alex De Minaur did on Saturday night. But, now, Australia has a male player to count on. Here’s why.

Maddison Inglis has been knocked out of the Australian Open. Picture: Getty Images

Alex de Minaur spent the summer juicing up his power game in a bid to dethrone the Grand Slam kings, as Australia’s No.1 men’s player leapt into the fourth round on the hottest streak of his young career.

De Minaur has won nine consecutive sets and was thrilled to be lighting up Rod Laver Arena in primetime on Saturday night on merit, rather than being dragged on to centre court by a superstar opponent such as Rafael Nadal.

Sick of being bullied by the best, ‘The Demon’ has turned the heat up in his own game and displayed that extra sizzle on what was a hellish night for opponent and Spanish practice buddy Pablo Andujar.

“Whenever the season ends you sit down with your team and … see what areas you can improve on,” de Minaur said after his 6- 4 6-4 6-2 victory.

“That (power groundstrokes) was definitely one. To take it to these top guys you’ve got to be aggressive and really take it to them.

“You can’t just sit back and let them bully you around. That was a focus, to really kind of step that up and just have aggressive mindset.

“Everyone nowadays hits the ball so hard, so you kind of have to improve with the rest of them.”

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Australia’s Alex De Minaur was at his best on Saturday night. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

The 22-year-old would’ve danced on to the practice court last week when Casper Ruud ghosted the tournament with a twisted ankle, delivering de Minaur the lucky last seed (No.32).

That fortune has expired.

A Round 4 contest against No.11 seed Jannik Sinner awaits on Monday – yes, a Demon against a Sinner – and then, if results go as expected, it would be No.4 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas (quarter-final) and No.2 seed Daniil Medvedev (semi-final).

Not many would give de Minaur a chance.

Then again, who gave The Wiggles a shot at taking out this year’s triple j Hottest 100?

Expert Darren Cahill said Demon could one day go all the way … just not this week.

Jim Courier said rule him out of Roland Garros on its clay courts, but rule him in for the three other slams.

De Minaur had a hit with Sinner in Sydney recently although he trails the Italian young gun 0-2 head-to-head.

EXTRAORDINARY defence from De Minaur and WHAT A VOLLEY! #AusOpen - Live on Channel 9 and 9Now pic.twitter.com/qRTvJHz81j

— Wide World of Sports (@wwos) January 22, 2022

“I know what’s coming – immense firepower. I’m going to have to be ready to not get bullied around the court and really take it to him,” he said.

Tennis Australia chair Jayne Hrdlicka, Davis Cup great John Alexander and Rod Laver himself had front-row tickets to de Minaur’s breakout performance as he stepped out of Nick Kyrgios’ shadow and into the limelight.

The Sydneysider joined Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic as the only male Aussies to reach the fourth round at the Australian Open in the past decade.

Kyrgios and Tomic have often been the ‘wild childs’ of the sport. Dripping with talent yet erratic and unpredictable, fans never know quite what to expect.

De Minaur is de opposite. Consistent and calm, the proud Davis Cup player who stays fit by running up hills with his golden retriever Enzo is the posterboy for Lleyton Hewitt’s national team.

De Minaur will take on Italian Jannik Sinner in the fourth round. Picture: Aaron FRANCIS/AFP

And it means the world to the likeable lad, with his Davis Cup number tattooed on his chest.

“109 is my Davis Cup number, so I’m the 109th Australian to be able to represent Australia in the Davis Cup. That is an honour I’m very proud of and I’ve dreamt of it since I was a kid,” said de Minaur, who missed the Tokyo Olympics with coronavirus.

“Thank you to Lleyton Hewitt, he got me under the Davis Cup umbrella. It’s my favourite time of the year.”

Kyrgios owns the tournament’s fastest serve, a 228km thunderbolt launched last Tuesday night during his only singles victory.

De Minaur isn’t in the top 30 for rocket serves. But, boy, talk about returns. De Minaur is better at making returns than a dog at a park.

He is the best at the Australian Open, making 85 per cent in week one.

Sending down big aces is flashy and books a clip in the highlights reel.

Stopping them to break into points – and eventually break serve – is more sustainable.

Kyrgios played 11 tournaments in 2020-2021. On court, he has been the sometimes man and off it the everywhere man.

Is he now a genuine chance to win it all? Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

De Minaur has played 35 tournaments in that time. He is everywhere, man, albeit largely living in the shadows.

That was until Saturday night. The headline act at Rod Laver Arena and the pressure on in a match he was expected to win.

The weight of expectation on centre court has crushed countless players, but De Minaur delivered delightfully.

Opponent Andujar will wake up on Sunday 36 years old and with a meek 5-11 record at Melbourne Park.

De Minaur will rise and wander over to South Yarra for a coffee and breakfast at his favourite little shop.

Perhaps eggs will be on the menu for the kid who is intent on beefing up.

Wild ride ends for O’Connell - but top 100 now in sight

- Marc McGowan

Sydney wildcard Chris O’Connell suffered an injury scare as his career-best Australian Open performance came to an abrupt end in the third round.

O’Connell pulled up sore after chasing down a drop shot in the sixth game of the match and immediately called for the trainer before conceding a second break of serve soon after.

The 27-year-old left the court for treatment and played out the match but lost 6-2 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-2 inside three hours to American serve-volleyer Maxime Cressy.

Injuries have ravaged O’Connell’s career since he was a teenager, including ankle and osteitis pubis setbacks last year sidelining him for a combined four months.

But his ambition to finally crack the top 100 has life after a breakthrough run to the round of 32, including a major upset of Argentine star Diego Schwartzman to make it there.

Christopher O'Connell was knocked out of the Australian Open by Maxine Cressy. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

O’Connell started the grand slam tournament ranked No.175 but will end it about 30 spots better.

For Cressy, who walks away with $221,000 in prizemoney, reaching the last 16 is another career milestone after making the ATP 250 final in Melbourne in the lead-up to the Australian Open, which he lost to former world No.1 Rafael Nadal.

The college tennis graduate must beat title favourite and second seed Daniil Medvedev to advance to the quarter-finals.

Cressy’s monstrous serve and net-rushing combination proved a nightmare riddle to solve, at least after O’Connell reduced him to 15-40 in the second game of the match.

But O’Connell became equally tough to break in the second set, with both men combining for a streak of 32-straight points on serve that wasn’t broken until the tiebreak.

It was the Australian who bucked the trend, sending a dipping return at Cressy’s feet that he couldn’t retrieve.

O’Connell looked like he had blown the set when consecutive wayward shots gifted his rival the chance to serve out the set, but there was another twist after Cressy created two set points.

A brilliant forehand cross-court pass winner started a run of four-straight O’Connell points, with the last of them securing him the set when Cressy tugged a sitter volley wide.

O'Connell still walks away with $221,000. Picture: MICHAEL ERREY/AFP-

Just as a boisterous court three crowd was bracing for a battle, the American broke O’Connell in the second game of the third set and raced to a two-sets-to-one lead.

O’Connell hung on slightly longer in the fourth set but the end was nigh once Cressy hammered a backhand through the Aussie’s defences.

Any hope of O’Connell mounting a fightback came and went the next game as Cressy saved a break-back point with a superb volley winner.

Gallant Aussie’s incredible $221K payday

Estonian veteran Kaia Kanepi has surged from a set down to end local wildcard Maddison Inglis’ Australian Open dream in ruthless fashion.

Inglis threatened for one set to make Kanepi her latest scalp, but the former world No.15 began brutalising the young Australian’s second serve as she swung the match in her favour.

Kanepi’s 2-6 6-2 6-0 victory in searing heat moves her into the fourth round at the Australian Open for the first time at her 13th attempt.

She will also return to the top 100 — a status that was also up for grabs for Inglis if she scored the upset — and could face second seed Aryna Sabalenka next.

Australia's Maddison Inglis serves against Estonia's Kaia Kanepi. Picture: AFP

“She played so well in the first set and I thought it was going to be hard to beat her today,” Kanepi said afterwards.

“I just tried to put the balls back in the court and see what happens.”

Inglis won only one of her 17 second-serve points across the final two sets, including dropping serve all seven times, as Kanepi took full advantage.

The 24-year-old wildcard started the week without a grand slam main draw match win but was bidding on Saturday to join world No.1 Ash Barty in the last 16.

Two Australian women had not made it that far at the Australian Open since Nicole Bradtke (nee Provis) and Hana Mandlikova in 1989.

Inglis went down in three sets in her third round contest. Picture: Getty Images

Inglis still walked off Rod Laver Arena with a smile after a breakout tournament, which began with a stunning triumph over reigning US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez.

She departs with a $221,000 payday, heightened confidence that she belongs on the biggest stages and within striking distance of the top 100 and guaranteed entry to all grand slams.

Inglis’ opening-set performance should also hearten her.

She broke Kanepi instantly, hammering a winner off each wing to snatch a 1-0 lead that set the tone for a blistering start.

The threat of Kanepi overpowering her never eventuated in the opening set as she maintained impressive depth of strokes and was often the aggressor.

But the 36-year-old Estonian responded savagely in breaking Inglis’ serve all four times in the second set to level the match and never relented.

Originally published as Australian Open 2022: Follow the latest results and all the Aussies at Melbourne Park