Alcaraz advances to third round and Djokovic qualifies at Australian Open

With a fierce determination to claim the only Grand Slam missing from his trophy collection, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the third round of the Australian Open on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic advanced as well, setting a new record for the most matches played in Grand Slam tournaments.

Meanwhile, Olympic champion Chinese Zheng Qinwen, a finalist in 2024, was eliminated, clearing the path for defending champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, who triumphed over Spain's Jessica Bouzas.

A favorite in the men's draw, Alcaraz, who already has four Grand Slam titles at just 21, showed no mercy to Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka. Alcaraz cruised to a 6-0, 6-1, 6-4 victory in a mere one hour and 21 minutes.

"The less time you spend on court in a Grand Slam, especially at the beginning, the better," said the Spaniard, whose best result in Melbourne was reaching the quarter-finals last year. 

Alcaraz overwhelmed his opponent from the very beginning, taking the first set in just 18 minutes and allowing the Japanese world number 65 to win only four points.

Especially fine in the service (14 aces), an aspect in which he has worked in the preseason, the Spaniard kept the tone in the second set and only slackened a little in the last, where it was enough a 'break' to seal the match.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic, who is pursuing his eleventh title in Melbourne, defeated Portugal’s Jaime Faria, who had come through the previous rounds, 6-1, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-2 on the iconic Rod Laver Arena center court.

The 37-year-old champion, who had to fight hard to overcome the Portuguese's determined resistance, dropped another set, just like he did in the first round against American teenager Nishesh Basavareddy.

It was Novak Djokovic's 430th Grand Slam match, extending his lead at the top of the Open era rankings, ahead of Switzerland's Roger Federer (429) and American Serena Williams (423).

"I try to give my best every time. It's been about 20 years that I've been competing in Grand Slams at the highest level. Win or lose, I will always leave my heart on the court," he said.

Women's draw

In the women's draw, the top favorite and champion of the last two editions lived up to expectations, advancing to the third round despite struggling with her serve at times.

Sabalenka dropped serve three times and faced 11 break points against Spain's Bouzas (No. 54), but she responded by winning five consecutive games in the second set to seal the match 6-3, 7-5.

"She played incredible tennis today and it wasa really tough test. I expected this tennis from her and I'm very pleased that she was able to win the match," said the world number one.

The biggest disappointment of the day came from China's Zheng Qinwen, who was a finalist in the 2024 edition, a WTA Finals participant, and the Olympic gold medalist in Paris 2024.

The 22-year-old, seeded fifth in the tournament, was defeated by Germany's Laura Siegemund (No. 97), who will turn 37 in March, with a score of 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.

Despite her typically calm on-court demeanor, the Chinese star lost her composure on Wednesday after receiving two time violations and dropping the first set in a tiebreak.

"It's tennis. Nothing else," Zheng said at the end of the match.

Before American Coco Gauff, seeded third, took to the court, her compatriot and friend Jessica Pegula comfortably defeated Belgium's Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-2.

Also still in the tournament is Japan's Naomi Osaka, a two-time Melbourne champion in 2019 and 2021, who had not reached the third round of a Grand Slam since her return to the circuit following the birth of her child in 2023.

In a "small revenge" for her U.S. Open defeat, the Japanese star fought back against Czech Karolina Muchova (20th seed) to claim a 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory.