MELBOURNE (Reuters) – The second round of the Australian Open begins on Wednesday with defending champion Aryna Sabalenka kicking things off in Rod Laver Arena and she will be quickly followed by 10-times champion Novak Djokovic.
Top seeds Alexander Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz are also in action along with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen.
TOP WOMEN’S MATCH: COCO GAUFF V JODIE BURRAGE
Britain’s Jodie Burrage nearly quit tennis in November after a six-month hiatus due to wrist and ankle injuries which saw her ranking plummet from a career-high 85 to 173.
But she persisted and the 25-year-old’s reward was a first ever victory in the Australian Open main draw where she shed “happy tears” as she advanced to the second round.
“I knew the hard work that went in for the last year. All of those emotions from the last nine months I think, yeah, were bottled up in there,” she said.
Burrage has played third seeded Gauff once before, losing to the American in Eastbourne in 2023, and the Briton said her homework would be rewatching that match.
“Last year I didn’t think I’d be playing these kinds of matches again. So I’m just going to relish the moment and see what happens,” she added.
Gauff said she does not remember the 2023 contest but added she would be careful as Burrage would play with “nothing to lose”.
TOP MEN’S MATCH: JACK DRAPER V THANASI KOKKINAKIS
Both Draper and Kokkinakis have already spent four hours on court labouring through their first-round encounters at Melbourne Park.
In Draper’s case, it was minutes on court he probably needed after missing most of the pre-season due to a hip injury and the 23-year-old “showed a lot of heart” to beat Mariano Navone in five sets.
The Briton knows it will not be easy playing Australia’s Kokkinakis, who had the crowd behind him to beat Roman Safiullin on home turf.
Obviously he’s going to have a lot of support,” the 15th seed said. ‘I’m aware we’re in Australia. He’s obviously playing well.”
Kokkinakis had painkillers and the crowd to thank for his first-round win and is relishing the prospect of playing on the “People’s Court” that is John Cain Arena, where another Briton, Jacob Fearnley, dispatched Australian hope Nick Kyrgios.
“I think I’ve brought some of my best tennis here (in Australia). I think it’s no surprise it’s to do with playing at home, playing in front of friends and family with that support,” Kokkinakis said.
‘I WILL GIVE YOU BASIC RESPECT’
Zheng has a reputation for cold handshakes at the net and although the Chinese fifth seed says she will always shake the hand of her opponent — win or lose — hugs are out of the question for the Paris Games gold medallist.
“I feel that is not necessary for me. I come here just to play a match,” she said.
“If I lost, I will give you just basic respect and that’s it. That’s why you will not see me lose one match with a happy face to the opponent.”
AUSTRALIAN OPEN ORDER OF PLAY ON WEDNESDAY
Here is the order of play on the main showcourts on the fourth day of the Australian Open (prefix number denotes seeding):
ROD LAVER ARENA
Day session (0030 GMT/1130 AEDT)
1-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) v Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (Spain)
7-Novak Djokovic (Serbia) v Jaime Faria (Portugal)
Night session (0800 GMT/1900 AEDT)
3-Coco Gauff (U.S.) v Jodie Burrage (Britain)
Pedro Martinez (Spain) v 2-Alexander Zverev (Germany)
MARGARET COURT ARENA
Day session (0030 GMT/1130 AEDT)
Elise Mertens (Belgium) v 7-Jessica Pegula (U.S.)
Yoshihito Nishioka (Japan) v 3-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain)
Night session (0800 GMT/1900 AEDT)
6-Casper Ruud (Norway) v Jakub Mensik (Czech Republic)
11-Paula Badosa (Spain) v Talia Gibson (Australia)
JOHN CAIN ARENA
Day session (0000 GMT/1100 AEDT)
Laura Siegemund (Germany) v 5-Zheng Qinwen (China)
27-Jordan Thompson (Australia) v Nuno Borges (Portugal)
Twilight session (0600 GMT/1700 AEDT)
12-Diana Shnaider (Russia) v Ajla Tomljanovic (Australia)
Night session (0800 GMT/1900 AEDT)
15-Jack Draper (Britain) v Thanasi Kokkinakis (Australia)
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Kate Mayberry)
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