Australian Open Daily Preview: Young Phenoms Coco Gauff and Emma Raducanu Play for the First Time - UBITENNIS
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Australian Open Daily Preview: Young Phenoms Coco Gauff and Emma Raducanu Play for the First Time

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2 years ago

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Coco Gauff on Monday in Melbourne (twitter.com/australianopen)

On Wednesday in Melbourne, 2021 US Open Champion Emma Raducanu faces 2022 Roland Garros Runner-up Coco Gauff, in what could be the first of many matches between these two young superstars.

Overall WTA action on Day 3 features eight Major singles champions, including World No.1 Iga Swiatek.  And two women who have recently made deep runs at this event, Danielle Collins and Karolina Muchova, collide in the second round.

On the ATP side, Defending Champion Rafael Nadal takes on Mackie McDonald, who advanced to the second week of this tournament two years ago.  And two other top men’s seeds, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev, play two Aussie wild cards in Rinky Hijikata and John Millman, both of whom prevailed in dramatic five-setters on Monday.

Additionally, a number of first round singles matches are to be concluded on Wednesday due to extreme heat preventing play for several hours on Tuesday.  But with rain possible throughout the day in Melbourne, it could be a challenging day for players on the outer courts.

Each day this preview will highlight the four most intriguing matchups, while outlining the other notable matches on the schedule.  Wednesday’s play will begin at 11:00am local time. 

Rafael Nadal (1) vs. Mackie McDonald – Not Before 2:00pm on Rod Laver Arena

Nadal arrived in Melbourne having lost six of his last seven matches, but grinded his way to a four-set victory on Monday over a cramping Jack Draper.  Can the defending champion now find his confidence and settle into the tournament?

McDonald arrived in Melbourne having lost five matches at Majors where he held a two-set-to-love lead.  He again forfeited a two-set-to-love lead to Brandon Nakashima on Monday, despite holding match point in the fourth-set tiebreak, yet managed to close out the match 6-4 in the fifth.  The American has twice reached the fourth round at a Slam, including two years ago in Melbourne.

Three years ago at Roland Garros, Nadal easily defeated McDonald in their only previous meeting, dropping just four games.  On this surface, and against this less-than-100% version of Rafa, I expect Mackie to provide much more resistance.  And unlike Draper, McDonald will not be cramping, as Mackie is one of the fittest players on tour.  But the American does not possess any weapons that can seriously threaten Nadal, so I like Rafa’s chances of advancing to the third round of this event for the 17th time in 18 appearances.

Emma Raducanu vs. Coco Gauff (7) – 7:00pm on Rod Laver Arena

Gauff has been on fire to start the season, with a 6-0 record.  She was the champion in Auckland two weeks ago, and is yet to drop a set this year.  And Coco is coming off a landmark 2022 season, when she achieved her first Major singles final.

Raducanu of course achieved that feat a year earlier, when she completed the most shocking Slam title run in tennis history at the 2021 US Open, winning the tournament as a qualifier.  Emma has understandably endured disappointing results since that time, losing more matches than she won last year.  And two weeks ago in Auckland, she was forced to retire due to an ankle injury, though she comfortably prevailed in straight sets on Monday.

In their first career meeting, Gauff must be considered a strong favorite.  Coco’s form across the last 12 months has been substantially higher than that of Emma’s.  But I am curious to see how both players handle this highly-anticipated matchup, with the tennis world expecting this to become a leading WTA rivalry for years to come.

Stefanos Tsitsipas (3) vs. Rinky Hijikata (WC) – Last on Rod Laver Arena

Tsitsipas has reached the semifinals of this tournament in three of the last four years, but is yet to advance farther.  In the opening round, he looked sharp against an in-form Quentin Halys, who won two Challenger events on hard courts this past fall.

Hijikata is a 21-year-old Australian who electrified the Aussies on Monday night, coming back from two-sets-down to defeat Yannick Hanfmann in five.  That was Rinky’s first main draw victory at a Major.  He won 53 matches at all levels last season, 47 of which were on hard courts.  And in his Slam debut last August in New York, he made a name for himself by taking the first set from Rafael Nadal.

Of course Tsitsipas is a prohibitive favorite in this matchup.  But seeing the entertaining and charismatic youngster play on his country’s biggest court should be fun, and Rinky is fully capable of making this a highly competitive contest.

Karolina Muchova vs. Danielle Collins (13) – Last on Margaret Court Arena

Collins was the runner-up here a year ago, but is currently battling a knee injury.  Despite having her knee heavily taped on Monday, she weathered an arduous battle against Anna Kalinskaya, in a match that lasted over three hours.

Muchova was a semifinalist here two years ago, but after suffering multiple injuries the past two years, is now ranked outside the top 100.  Yet she lost just three games in her opening round match, spending nearly two hours less on court than Collins.

Certainly Karolina will be the fresher player in this first-time encounter.  And she possesses much more variety and guile in her game than Danielle.  With Collins at least slightly-injured, as well as under the pressure of defending finalist points at this event, Muchova should be favored to prevail.

Other Notable Matches on Wednesday:

Iga Swiatek (1) vs. Camila Osorio – Swiatek survived two tight sets against Jule Niemeier on Monday evening.  Osorio is a 21-year-old who was ranked as high as 33rd in the world during 2022. 

Cristina Bucsa (Q) vs. Bianca Andreescu – Andreescu beat the 25th seed, Marie Bouzkova, in straight sets in the first round.  Bucsa is a 25-year-old who won 49 matches at all levels last season.

Jessica Pegula (3) vs. Aliaksandra Sasnovich – Pegula dropped just one game in her opening match, which lasted less than an hour.  In the second round of last summer’s US Open, she defeated Sasnovich 6-4, 6-4.

Alex Molcan vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime (6) – Molcan took out 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka in a nearly four-and-a-half hour five-setter on Monday night.  And he’s 1-0 against Auger-Aliassime, having outlasted him last April on the clay of Marrakech in a final set tiebreak.

Juncheng Shang (Q) vs. Frances Tiafoe (16) – On Monday, 17-year-old Juncheng became the first Chinese man to win a match at the Australian Open in the Open Era.  On the same day, Tiafoe survived a stern four-set test from Daniel Altmaier.

John Millman (WC) vs. Daniil Medvedev (7) – Medvedev lost only three games in his first round match.  Millman came back from two-sets-to-one down to prevail in five over Marc-Andrea Huesler. 

Wednesday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Wrist Injury Threatening To End Holger Rune’s Olympic Dream

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5 days ago

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21/07/2024

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Holger Rune will have a second medical opinion on Monday before deciding if he is fit enough to play at the Olympic Games, according to his team. 

The Danish world No.17 recently retired from his quarter-final match at the Hamburg Open due to a knee injury. The hope at the time was that his withdrawal would be just a precautionary measure ahead of the Olympics. However, he is also dealing with a second issue that appears to be more serious.

According to TV 2 Sport, Rune has been struggling with a wrist issue and underwent a scan on Sunday which his mother Aneke says ‘doesn’t look promising.’ Aneke is also the manager of her son’s career. Rune’s Olympic dreams now rest on the outcome of a second medical expert that he will visit tomorrow who has a better understanding of the sport. 

“Unfortunately, it does not look promising after the first medical opinion after the review of the scan of the wrist,” Aneke Rune told TV 2 Sport.

“We are waiting for two tennis-specific doctors who will give a second opinion tomorrow (Monday). Tennis wrists look different from regular wrists, so we’ll hold out hope for one more day.” 

Rune is one of three Danish players entered into the Olympic tennis event along with Caroline Wozniacki and Clara Tauson. The country has only won one medal in tennis before which was at the 1912 Games when Sofie Castenschiold won silver in the women’s indoor singles event. 

So far this season, the 21-year-old has won 27 matches on the Tour but is yet to claim a title. He reached the final of the Brisbane International and then the semi-finals of three more events. In the Grand Slams, he made it to the fourth round of the French Open and Wimbledon. 

It is not known when a final decision regarding Rune’s participation in Paris will be made.

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Hubert Hurkacz Undergoes ‘Knee Procedure’ Ahead of Olympic Bid

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1 week ago

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17/07/2024

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Poland’s top player on the ATP Tour is not giving up on his dream of winning a medal at the Olympic Games despite recently undergoing a medical procedure.

World No.7 Hubert Hurkacz suffered a knee injury during his second round clash at Wimbledon against France’s Arthur Fils. In the fourth set tiebreak of their clash, Hurkacz dived for a shot but landed badly on his knee and required on-court medical attention. He then played two more points before retiring from the match. 

In a social media post published on Wednesday, the  27-year-old confirmed he underwent a procedure on his knee earlier this week but didn’t provide any further details.  Although Hurkacz has stated his intention to play at the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, where the tennis event will be held on the clay at Roland Garros. 

“I had a knee procedure this Monday, but I’m feeling better already and my team and are dedicating extensive time each day to the rehab process.” He wrote on Instagram. 

“It’s a dream for every athlete to represent their country at the Olympics, and I want to make sure I am fully fit and ready before making the final decision to step on court. The aim is not only to participate, but to win a medal for my country.”

So far this season Hurkacz has won 34 out of 48 matches played on the Tour. He won the Estoril Open in April and was runner-up to Jannik Sinner in Halle. 

The Olympic tennis event is scheduled to begin a week Saturday on July 27th. Poland is yet to win a medal in the event but expectations are high with women’s No.1 Iga Swiatek also taking part. 

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Motivation, Pressure And Expectations – Novak Djokovic Targets History At Wimbledon

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2 weeks ago

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13/07/2024

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image via x.com/wimbledon

Novak Djokovic has broken numerous records throughout his career but he still feels the pressure of trying to make history in the sport. 

The world No.2 is through to his 10th Wimbledon final where he will play Carlos Alcaraz, who beat him at this stage of the tournament 12 months ago. There is plenty on the line for the Serbian who could equal Roger Federer’s record for most men’s titles won at SW19 and break the overall record for most major singles won in the sport if he triumphs over the Spaniard. Djokovic currently has 24 Grand Slam trophies to his name which is the same as Margaret Court, who won some of her titles before the Open Era started. 

“Obviously I’m aware that Roger [Federer] holds eight Wimbledons. I hold seven. History is on the line.” Djokovic said on Friday after beating Lorenzo Musetti.

“Also, the 25th potential Grand Slam. Of course, it serves as a great motivation, but at the same time it’s also a lot of pressure and expectations.”

Coming into Wimbledon, there had been doubts over Djokovic’s form after he underwent surgery to treat a knee injury he suffered at the French Open. However, he has defied the odds to reach the final. His run has also seen him beat Alexi Popyrin and Holger Rune before getting a walkover in the quarter-finals from Alex de Minaur, who sustained an injury during the tournament. Then on Friday, he overcame a spirited Musetti in three sets. 

Despite the challenge, Djokovic has insisted that his expectations to do well are always high no matter what the situation is. During what has been a roller-coaster first six months of the season, he is yet to win a title this year or beat a player currently ranked in the top 10. Although he will achieve both of these if her beats Alcaraz on Sunday. 

“Every time I step out on the court now, even though I’m 37 and competing with the 21-year-olds, I still expect myself to win most of the matches, and people expect me to win, whatever, 99% of the matches that I play.” He said.

“I always have to come out on the court and perform my best in order to still be at the level with Carlos [Alcaraz] or Jannik [Sinner] or Sascha [Zverev] or any of those guys, Daniil [Medvedev]. 

“This year hasn’t been that successful for me. It’s probably the weakest results the first six months I’ve had in many years. That’s okay. I had to adapt and accept that and really try to find also way out from the injury that I had and kind of regroup.”

Djokovic hopes that a Wimbledon win will help turn his season around like it has done in the past for him. 

“Wimbledon historically there’s been seasons where I wasn’t maybe playing at a desired level, but then I would win a Wimbledon title and then things would change.” He commented.

“For example, that was the case in 2018 when I had elbow surgery earlier in the year, dropped my rankings out of top 20, losing in fourth round of Australian Open, I think it was quarters of Roland-Garros, and just not playing the tennis that I want to play. Then I won Wimbledon and then won US Open and then later on became No.1 very soon.”

Meanwhile, 21-year-old Alcaraz is hoping to stop Djokovic in his tracks. Should he defend his title at Wimbledon, he would become the first player outside the Big Three to do so since Pete Sampras more than 20 years ago. He has won their only previous meeting on the grass but trails their head-to-head 3-2. 

“I’m sure he knows what he has to do to beat me,” said Alcaraz.

“But I’m ready to take that challenge and I’m ready to do it well.”

When the two players take to the court to play in the Wimbledon final, Djokovic will be 15 years and 348 days older than Alcaraz. Making it the largest age gap in a men’s Grand Slam final since the 1974 US Open. Whoever is victorious will receive £2,700,000 in prize money. 

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