Carlos Alcaraz came through a tough four-set battle with Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego on a day of close encounters for the big names at the Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic’s struggles will have given heart to his rivals but few are finding the early stages of the tournament straightforward, and second seed Alcaraz needed three hours and 25 minutes to defeat Sonego 6-4 6-7 (3) 6-3 7-6 (3).
In a match full of shot-making, Alcaraz topped the highlight reel with two winners around the net post.
“I didn’t feel I had downs in the match,” said the Spaniard. “In the tie-break, he started to play an unbelievable game. I think he made some big returns after a good first serve from me.
“I think probably I could do something else in the tie-break. But the level that he played, it was really, really high.”
Sixth seed Alexander Zverev and 11th seed Casper Ruud both needed fifth-set tie-breaks to edge into round three.
Zverev looked in deep trouble down two sets to one against Slovakian qualifier Lukas Klein before recovering to win 7-5 3-6 4-6 7-6 (5) 7-6 (10/7).
The German said of his opponent: “I didn’t know him at all. To be honest, if he would have been in a room, I would have not known that he’s my opponent.
“But he played extremely well. He played very, very aggressive, hitting every single ball as hard as he could from both sides, I feel like. A lot of the times I was a spectator in the match. I was just witnessing whether he’s going to hit a winner or miss.
“That’s not a nice feeling to be in, especially in the important moments, but I’m happy that I managed to win.”
Zverev next faces American teenager Alex Michelsen, who knocked out last year’s quarter-finalist Jiri Lehecka.
Ruud was given a huge battle by Australian Max Purcell, who twice fought back from a set down to force a decider before the Norwegian prevailed 6-3 6-7 (5) 6-3 3-6 7-6 (10/7).
“He’s a really tricky player and a great tennis player in my eyes, even though he plays different from others,” said Ruud.
“I’m very happy with the win. He beat me in Cincinnati. The plan was to do things better from that time, and I think I did, and that was just enough to win the match.”
Swiatek soars into Madrid Open last 16 after dropping just two games against Cirstea
Iga Swiatek stormed through to the Madrid Open last 16 following a dominant straight-sets victory over Sorana Cirstea.
The world number one dropped just two games as she inflicted a comprehensive 6-1 6-1 rout on her Romanian opponent in the Spanish capital.
Swiatek, who was runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka in last year's event, will play Sara Sorribes Tormo in the round of 16 after the Spaniard defeated two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka.
The Pole is now 26-4 for the season, in which she has already triumphed at the Qatar Open and Indian Wells Open, as she eyes the ninth WTA 1000 singles title of her career.
Data debrief
Swiatek is through to her sixth round of 16 from seven main-draw appearances in WTA 1000 events on clay (85.7 per cent) - the highest percentage rate among players with at least five such appearances since the format's introduction in 2009.
The three-time French Open champion also boasts the best WTA match win rate of any player since 2000 on clay (87 per cent). Overall, only Chris Evert (94.5 per cent), Margaret Court (89.5 per cent) and Steffi Graf (89.2 per cent) boast a higher percentage in the Open Era.
Alcaraz begins Madrid Open campaign with emphatic win
Carlos Alcaraz continued his fine record at the Madrid Open with an emphatic 6-2 6-1 victory over Alexander Shevchenko on Friday.
The two-time defending champion made it 12 straight wins at his home tournament to ensure he will face Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild in the last 32.
Alcaraz was playing his first match on the ATP Tour since March 28 after being unable to compete in the Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open due to an arm injury.
But he was still able to make a fine start to his clay-court season, breaking serve in the first game and racing to victory in only one hour and eight minutes.
Data Debrief
Sometimes the scoreline can be harsh on a beaten player, but on this occasion Alcaraz was clearly dominant, breaking the Kazakh seven times in the match and forcing 11 break-point opportunities while conceding only three for his opponent.
That allowed the Spaniard to claim a dominant victory despite being broken once in each set. He will now turn his attention to a clash with Seyboth Wild, who battled past Lorenzo Musetti with a 6-4 6-4 win.
Reigning champion Sabalenka pushed by Linette at Madrid Open
Aryna Sabalenka got her Madrid Open campaign started with a 6-4 3-6 6-3 win over Magda Linette on Friday.
Sabalenka could not quite hit her peak form against Linette, but the world number two nevertheless got the job done after going the distance.
The Belarusian is hunting a record-equalling third title in Madrid, where she is the reigning champion, though she has not won back-to-back matches at a tournament since winning the Australian Open.
"It's not about being confident," Sabalenka said. "It's about how much you're ready to do to get it. It's about the hard work and to be ready, be ready for the big fights. I feel like confidence is not going to help you in those big matches. It's about staying there and fighting for it."
Data Debrief
Sabalenka (70 per cent, 56-24) is now one of five active players since 2020 to hold a winning percentage of 70 per cent or higher at WTA-1000 events.
Iga Swiatek, Simona Halep, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula are the other players to feature on that list.
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