Andy Murray will compete at the Australian Open for the first time in three years after being awarded a main-draw wildcard.
Murray has finished as a runner-up five times at Melbourne Park – most recently in 2016 when he was beaten by Novak Djokovic 6-1 7-5 7-6 (7-3).
The Scot has since struggled with a hip injury that had him on the verge of retirement, while he dropped to 134th in the world rankings.
However, the former world number one was in action at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi last week, where he defeated Rafael Nadal before eventually falling to Andrey Rublev in the final of the exhibition event.
Murray was due to feature at the Australian Open in 2020 before a positive coronavirus test stopped him from playing, but the 34-year-old is thankful for the chance to compete in Melbourne again.
"I'm really excited to be back playing at the Australian Open and grateful to Craig [Tiley] and the team for the opportunity," Murray said on his wildcard, as quoted by the tournament's website.
"I've had some great times in Australia playing in front of the amazing crowds and I can't wait to step back out on court at Melbourne Park."
Tournament director and Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley added: "Andy is renowned for his fighting spirit, passion and love of the game, and I'm delighted to welcome him back to Melbourne in January."
American Stefan Kozlov and Frenchman Lucas Pouille join Murray as the men's singles wildcards so far, with the other four spots likely to go to Australians and another to an Asia-Pacific player.
The Australian Open gets underway on January 17 with the final set to take place 13 days later.
Alcaraz turns on the style to beat Korda at Roland Garros
Carlos Alcaraz dug deep to overcome a spirited performance from Sebastian Korda in the third round of the French Open, claiming a 6-4 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 win.
Korda failed to build on an early break as Alcaraz took the opener on Court Philippe-Chatrier, but he appeared to have the Spaniard on the ropes when he forced a second-set tie-break.
However, the two-time grand slam champion clinched the tie-break with a huge forehand winner and seemed to grow in stature from there, moving well and displaying too much power for his American opponent.
Alcaraz put Korda under pressure from the off in the third set and did not give up a single break point on his own serve, converting the first of two match points with a neat serve and volley.
He will face either Ben Shelton or Felix Auger-Aliassime next, with Stefanos Tsitsipas potentially lurking in the quarter-finals.
Data Debrief: Alcaraz just too good
As was the case against Jesper de Jong in round two, Alcaraz looked to be under serious pressure on Friday, only to step things up and pull away from his opponent.
He has now won 14 of his 17 singles matches at the French Open, with his win ratio of 82.4 per cent the third highest among active male players, after Rafael Nadal (96.6 per cent) and Novak Djokovic (85.3 per cent).
Swiatek celebrates birthday with routine win over Bouzkova
Iga Swiatek marked her 23rd birthday with a straight-sets victory over Marie Bouzkova at the French Open on Friday, maintaining her charge for a third successive Roland-Garros title.
Swiatek was pushed all the way by Naomi Osaka in her second-round match on Wednesday, but she enjoyed a far more serene outing on Court Philippe-Chatrier in the third round.
The world number one raced to a 6-4 6-2 win as Bouzkova struggled to match her heavy-hitting, and she could even afford to surrender one of her two breaks at the tail end of the opener.
Swiatek broke immediately at the start of the second set, setting the tone for a powerful finish to the match, her victory fittingly sealed with a thumping forehand up the line.
She will face Anastasia Potapova next up after the Russian overcame Wang Xinyu in three sets on Friday.
Data Debrief: Perfect celebration for Swiatek
Since the WTA rankings were first published in 1975, only two world number ones have won a match at Roland Garros on their birthday, Justine Henin in 2007 and Swiatek on Friday.
She is also the only player this century to reach the fourth round of the women's draw on each of her first six French Open appearances.
Sinner maintains fine form with routine Kotov win
Jannik Sinner maintained his excellent form and cruised into the fourth round of the French Open with a dominant win over Pavel Kotov on Friday.
The Australian Open champion won his third successive match without dropping a set at Roland Garros, triumphing 6-4 6-4 6-4 in just under two and a half hours on court.
Sinner – who is eyeing Novak Djokovic's place at the top of the ATP rankings – was on top from the off and forced 13 break points, moving well and forcing the issue with a series of powerful ground strokes.
Early breaks did the trick in sets one and two, and it was smooth sailing once he secured another break five games into the third, teeing up a fourth-round meeting with either Corentin Moutet or Sebastian Ofner.
Data Debrief: Sinner marches on
Sinner has now won his first 10 grand slam matches of 2024, and a deep run looks extremely likely just one year after he suffered a second-round exit in the French capital.
Since the turn of the century, he is just the third man to start a calendar year with 10 straight major wins before turning 23 years old, after Rafael Nadal and Djokovic.
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