Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka move closer to another Australian Open showdown
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Coco Gauff still hasn't lost a match or even at set at the Australian Open — or, actually, this season. She moved into the fourth round at Melbourne Park with a straightforward 6-4, 6-2 victory over 2021 U.S. Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez on Friday night.
While there have been plenty of surprises in the men's bracket so far, most of the top women, other than No. 5 Zheng Qinwen, have progressed through the draw without an issue. That includes wins on Friday for No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who is the two-time defending champion in Australia, No. 3 Gauff, No. 11 Paula Badosa and No. 14 Mirra Andreeva.
Naomi Osaka, a two-time champion in Australia, stopped playing because of a strained abdominal muscle after dropping the first set of her match against Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Belinda Bencic. No. 7 Jessica Pegula was scheduled to play later Friday against Olga Danilovic.
Men's winners in third-round action included No. 2 Alexander Zverev, No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz and No. 12 Tommy Paul, while Novak Djokovic — who won 10 of his 24 Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open — was in action at night against No. 26 Tomas Machac.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina came back from two sets down for the second match in a row, saving two match points to sneak past 19-year-old Jakub Mensik 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-4, 6-2. Alcaraz's next opponent will be No. 15 Jack Draper or Aleksandar Vukic. A year ago, 2023 U.S. Open champion Gauff had her best run in Melbourne, getting to the semifinals before bowing out against Sabalenka, who extended her winning streak at the tournament to 17 matches by eliminating Clara Tauson 7-6 (5), 6-4 on Friday.
