Category: Articles

  • Australian Open: Djokovic & Swiatek react to Gauff’s criticism as Serena Williams sends message

    Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek have echoed Coco Gauff’s complaints about the lack of privacy for players at the Australian Open, while Serena Williams also sent a message of support to the American star.

    After Gauff lost 1-6, 2-6 to Elina Svitolina in the Australian Open quarter-finals, the tournament’s behind the scenes cameras broadcasted the two-time Grand Slam winner breaking her racket in a corridor.

    In her press conference, Gauff said: “I tried to go somewhere where they wouldn’t broadcast it, but obviously they did.

    “So maybe some conversations can be had because I feel like at this tournament the only private place we have is the locker room.”

    Gauff later took to social media to write: “Living and learning, but still will keep trying to move forward.

    “Also, I’m a real person with real feelings… I care a lot and I’m trying my best. Thank you to those who understand that.”

    Footage of Swiatek forgetting her accreditation at Melbourne Park was another popular clip shared online during this year’s event, and the Polish star backed Gauff’s thoughts on the cameras after her quarter-final loss to Elena Rybakina.

    “The question is, are we tennis players, or are we animals in the zoo where they are observed even when they poop? That was exaggerating, obviously, but it would be nice to have some privacy,” said the world No 2 and six-time major champion.

    “It would be nice also to have your own process and not always be observed.

    “I don’t think it should be like that because we’re tennis players, we’re meant to be watched on the court and in the press, that’s our job. It’s not our job to be a meme when you forget your accreditation.

    “It’s funny, for sure. People have something to talk about. But, for us, I don’t think it’s necessary.”

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    Djokovic revealed he is “against” there being so many cameras and admitted it can be “frightening” if you forget about their presence.

    “I empathise with her. I know what it feels like to break a racquet. I’ve done it a few times in my career. I know how it is to be frustrated, particularly after a match where you underperform,” the 24-time Grand Slam winner told reporters after reaching the semi-finals.

    “And I agree with her. It’s really sad that you can’t move away anywhere and hide and fume out your frustration, your anger, in a way that won’t be captured by a camera.

    “But we live in a society where content is everything. It’s a deeper discussion. It’s really hard for me to see the trend changing in the opposite direction, meaning we take out cameras.

    “It’s only going to be as it is or even more cameras. I’m surprised we have no cameras while we’re taking a shower. That’s probably the next step.

    “I’m against it. I think there should be a limit and a borderline where this is our space. You gotta be careful. I remember the time when we didn’t have so many cameras.

    “Getting used to having an eye that you don’t hear that you sometimes forget about, always on you, is frightening. At times you wanna relax and be yourself in a sense that you don’t want the public to see.”

    Tennis icon Serena Williams took to X/Twitter to praise Gauff’s passion and joked she could teach her fellow American how to “demolish” a racket in “one swipe.”

    “Passion. Caring. Matters. Nothing wrong with hating to lose,” wrote the 23-time major champion.

    “Now Coco when you want I can show you how to demolish in one swipe… Serena style.”

    READ NEXT: Coco Gauff’s ‘shocking’ Australian Open display could cause ‘scar tissue’ – former world No 4

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  • ‘Devastating’ Jannik Sinner is on a ‘different level’ according to former Grand Slam champion

    Jannik Sinner is on a ‘different level’ from other players who ‘just can’t hang with him’, according to Jamie Murray.

    The Italian collected his 19th match win in a row at the Australian Open after beating Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.

    Sinner is also on an overall 20-match winning streak, having ended the 2025 season by winning titles at the Vienna Open, Paris Masters, and the Nitto ATP Finals.

    The world No 2’s future in Melbourne looked dim in the third round after suffering from full-body cramps against American Eliot Spizzirri, a problem which has been absent in his two subsequent matches.

    Jamie Murray, seven-time Grand Slam champion and former British No 1, was effusive in his praise of Sinner after his victory over Shelton.

    “He’s on a different level,” said Murray, whilst speaking on TNT Sports.

    “Guys just can’t hang with him. Even with Shelton’s firepower it is so difficult.

    “He is so good at neutralising the play and getting himself back into position in the court, and once he has a position to get his front foot forward it’s so hard for guys to get back into the rally, there is no let-up.

    “The challenge against Sinner is his tempo is so high in the rally and he is so quick from side to side, and it is so difficult to deal with him once you are in a rally.”

    Sinner has now won 22 sets in a row against Shelton, including all of their eight most recent meetings.

    The American had prevailed in their first meeting at the 2023 edition of the Shanghai Masters, claiming a 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) victory.

    However, on this occasion, Sinner’s more all-around game meant that he was rarely troubled, breaking on three occasions and saving all four break points which he faced.

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    Tim Henman, former British No 1 and TNT Sports contributor, also weighed in with his analysis of why the four-time Grand Slam champion is a step above the field.

    “Although Shelton tried a few different things, mixing up his serve and trying to finish up a few points at the net, time and time again Sinner comes up with the answers,” commented the Brit.

    “That’s why he is so difficult for everybody to beat on a hard court.

    “Sinner is serving incredibly well and then on the return of serve, Shelton has one of the best serves out there, but Sinner is in most service games and putting the pressure on.

    “Then on both wings he is devastating.

    “He has to play some of the best tennis of his life to win the baseline exchanges, and unfortunately for him when he had some second serve returns, he didn’t make his opponent play.

    “But his game is moving in the right direction. He has reached another Grand Slam quarter-final, and he will go away and look at where he can improve to have an impact against Sinner.

    “We know that Sinner is so tough, but when you have a serve like Shelton and you haven’t won a set in the last 22, he will want to put that straight next time they meet.”

    Sinner will play 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in the last four, with Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev contesting the opposing semi-final.

    The Italian has won all of his last five most recent meetings against the 24-time Grand Slam champion, including straight-set victories at last year’s French Open and Wimbledon.

    It was Sinner who, in 2024, became the first player in history to beat the Serb after the quarter-final stage of the Australian Open.

    That semi-final contest ended 6-1, 6-2, 7-6(6), 6-3 in the world No 2’s favour, snapping Djokovic’s 34-match winning streak in Melbourne.

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  • Watch: Novak Djokovic calls out ‘disrespectful’ question involving Alcaraz, Sinner, Federer & Nadal

    Novak Djokovic took issue with a question about him “chasing” Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner that he found “disrespectful” after reaching the Australian Open semi-finals.

    The 38-year-old tennis legend was trailing world No 5 Lorenzo Musetti 4-6, 3-6, 3-1 in the quarter-finals in Melbourne when the Italian was forced to retire due to a leg injury.

    Djokovic will face Sinner, the two-time reigning Australian Open champion and world No 2, in the semi-finals. Sinner downed seventh-ranked Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in the last eight.

    In his post-match press conference, Djokovic interrupted a reporter who compared the Serbian’s current situation to when he was competing with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at the start of his career.

    Here is the full exchange.

    Q. In the early part of your career when you were chasing Roger and Rafa for titles, and now at the back end of your career, you’re chasing Jannik and Carlos–

    Djokovic: I’m chasing Jannik and Carlos? In which sense?

    Q. In terms of winning Grand Slam titles, just right now.

    Djokovic: So I’m always the chaser and I’m never being chased?

    Q. In the meantime, you won 24 Grand Slams–

    Djokovic: Thanks. It’s worth saying that sometimes, right?

    Q. Sorry, I should have put that in the middle…

    Djokovic: No worries, no worries.

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    Q. So, what I’m saying is, is it possible to compare the way you felt initially when you were chasing Roger and Rafa with now when Jannik and Carlos have split the last eight Slams?

    Djokovic: Well, I find it a little bit disrespectful that you kind of miss out on what happened in between where, the times when I started chasing, as you say, Rafa and Roger, and now that I’m chasing Carlos and Jannik. And there’s probably about a 15-year period in between where I was dominating the Grand Slams. So I think it’s important to put that in prospect and perspective.

    I don’t feel like I’m chasing, to be honest. Roger and Rafa will always be my greatest rivals. I have tremendous respect for what Jannik and Carlos are doing, and they continue to do, and they will do for the next 10 to 15, 20 years. God knows how many years they’re going to play, they’re so young.

    This is a kind of natural cycle in sports. You’re going to have another two superstars that are going to maybe have another third guy that I’m going to cheer for, because I’ve always been the third guy at the beginning. But it’s good for our sport, I think these kind of rivalries, and the contrast of the personalities and the styles of play, are very good for tennis.

    And how is that affecting me? As I said, I don’t feel like I’m chasing. I’m creating my own history, and I think I’ve been very clear when I say that my intention is always to, in terms of achievements and objectives and results, I want to get to the championship match in every tournament, particularly Slams. And Slams are one of the biggest reasons why I keep on competing and playing tennis. So yeah, that’s all I can say.

    Are they (Alcaraz and Sinner) better right now than me and all the other guys? Yes, they are. I mean, the quality and the level is amazing. It’s great. It’s phenomenal. But does that mean that I walk out with the white flag? No. I’m going to fight until the last shot, until the last point, and do my very best to challenge them.

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    The post Watch: Novak Djokovic calls out ‘disrespectful’ question involving Alcaraz, Sinner, Federer & Nadal appeared first on Tennis365.

  • Australian Open: Lorenzo Musetti makes telling confession about injury after ‘painful’ retirement

    Lorenzo Musetti has opened up after his “really painful” retirement against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open and revealed he believes the injury he suffered was a “tear.”

    The world No 5 was leading 6-4, 6-3, 1-3 against 10-time Australian Open champion Djokovic in the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park when he was forced to retire due to a right leg injury.

    Musetti entered the match with a 1-9 record against Djokovic, and he was delivering a superb performance until his body cruelly broke down.

    The Italian star was competing in his first Australian Open quarter-final, and a victory over the 24-time Grand Slam champion in Melbourne would have surely have been his finest win.

    In his post-match press conference, Musetti revealed the issue arose early in the second set and got progressively worse.

    “Well, I felt it at the beginning of the second set. I felt there was something strange in my right leg,” said the Italian.

    “And I continued to play because I was playing really, really, really well, but I was feeling that the pain was increasing, and the problem was not getting away.

    “I feel personally that I know my body and I feel personally that I’m kind of secure that this is a tear, unfortunately.”

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    Asked if he had an idea as to why he has had to retire multiple times at Grand Slams, Musetti said he had no explanation.

    “No. We have done all the exams and tests before starting the season to see and to try to prevent these kind of injuries, and nothing came out,” he said.

    “So I honestly have no words to describe how I’m feeling right now and how tough is for me this injury in this moment.”

    The 23-year-old added: “Honestly, I never imagined the feeling of leading two sets to zero against Novak and playing like that.

    “Having the lead of the match like that and being forced to retire is something that I will never imagine. Of course, it’s really painful.

    “I played almost all the second set like that, but I could play, because especially with the serve, it was helping me a lot. I was trying a little bit to push from the baseline, which I was feeling the ball pretty well today.

    “So I was managing to try to hold there and to stay and try to, you know, not look at the pain. But then afterwards when I sit down for three minutes and stayed longer in the wait position, the pain immediately started to increase.

    “I was – especially when I was going with the forehand on the open stance – I was feeling that I could not come back to the middle. As you saw, I could not really play. Unfortunately, there was no chance, and no way to tape it, to do something, to continue to play.”

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  • Iga Swiatek warned by experts ahead of Elena Rybakina showdown at Australian Open

    Tennis analysts have warned Iga Swiatek about the threat of Elena Rybakina ahead of the pair’s blockbuster matchup in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Australian Open.

    No 2 seed Swiatek and No 5 seed Rybakina will face off in the first match on the Wednesday schedule at the Melbourne Grand Slam.

    Both players are aiming to win their maiden Australian Open title, with Rybakina a runner-up in 2023 and Swiatek a two-time semi-finalist.

    Swiatek is chasing her seventh major, which would see her complete the career Grand Slam, while Rybakina is vying for her second Slam title.

    After Swiatek’s 6-0, 6-3 fourth round hammering of Maddison Inglis, former British No 1 Laura Robson looked ahead to the Pole’s showdown with Rybakina.

    “Iga is on a mission at the moment and she’s got probably one of the toughest opponents you can get, not that any opponent can be easy now, but Elena Rybakina next, who’s just been cruising through the draw, and she’s going to need to play very, very well,” Robson told TNT Sports.

    “But it is such a good lineup for the quarter-finals on the women’s side of the draw. Iga is still looking for that career Grand Slam with that kind of performance.”

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    Jamie Murray, a former world No 1 in doubles, also gave his verdict.

    “Iga’s just got a much bigger weight of shot [than Inglis],” Murray said. “She’s got the ability to manipulate the ball.

    “It’s a good performance, but she’s going to have much bigger tests coming ahead.

    “I don’t feel like we’ve learned a whole lot from her and I mean, her next match against Rybakina will be a huge step up, a huge challenge for her, and I think that’s when we’ll know whether she’s really looking to win this title or not.”

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    The winner of Swiatek and Rybakina’s match will play either Amanda Anisimova or Jessica Pegula in the semi-finals.

    What is the head-to-head between Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina?

    This will be the 12th meeting between the pair, and Swiatek leads the head-to-head 6-5.

    Rybakina won the last encounter at the WTA Finals in November after Swiatek had won the previous four matches.

    READ NEXT: Coco Gauff’s ‘shocking’ Australian Open display could cause ‘scar tissue’ – former world No 4

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  • Australian Open: Why Carlos Alcaraz is guaranteed ATP Rankings boost after Alex de Minaur win

    Carlos Alcaraz has achieved so much already in his career that it is not too often he breaks new ground — but he has done exactly that at the Australian Open this year.

    The Spaniard is a two-time champion at the French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open, but had never made it past the last eight of the Australian Open prior to 2026, with the 22-year-old falling at the quarter-final stage in 2024 and 2025.

    However, Alcaraz has finally leapt over the quarter-final hurdle in Melbourne and did it in style on Tuesday, maintaining his perfect record over Alex de Minaur with a 7-5, 6-2, 6-1 victory over the world No 6 inside the Rod Laver Arena.

    Victory for Alcaraz makes him one of just four active players to reach the semi-final of all four Grand Slam events, joining Novak Djokovic, Marin Cilic, and Jannik Sinner in an exclusive club.

    And, it ensures that he will boost his status as the world No 1, regardless of how he — and leading rival Sinner — fare across the rest of their campaigns.

    Rankings boost

    Alcaraz holds a staggering 12,050 points in the official ATP Rankings, placing him 550 points ahead of world No 2 Sinner heading into the event.

    However, having lost in the last eight to Djokovic twelve months, just 400 of Alcaraz’s official ranking points come from the Australian Open.

    In contrast, world No 2 Sinner entered Melbourne as the defending champion and has 2,000 points to defend at the tournament; he has currently defended 400 points, with his quarter-final versus Ben Shelton taking place on Wednesday.

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    With Sinner defending a full complement of points and already behind Alcaraz in the rankings, it was impossible for the Italian to overtake the Spaniard at the tournament, regardless of results.

    However, by reaching the semi-final, Alcaraz is guaranteed to extend his advantage at the top.

    By reaching the semi-final of the Australian Open for the very first time, the 22-year-old is guaranteed to hold more ranking points than he did prior to the tournament.

    As it stands, the Spaniard is up to 12,450 points after reaching the last four for the first time, with his run worth 800 ranking points — 400 points more than a quarter-final run.

    Alcaraz will move to 12,950 points if he beats Alexander Zverev in Friday’s semi-final and reaches the final for the first time, and would hold a staggering 13,650 points if he were to lift the title.

    In contrast, reigning champion Sinner can only maintain his current total of 11,500 points if he were to defend the title.

    The Italian would still be 950 points behind if he wins the title and Alcaraz loses in the semi-final, or 1,450 points behind if he lifts the title and Alcaraz loses him to the final.

    And, if Sinner was unable to defend the title, Alcaraz would be guaranteed to hold a sizable lead over the Italian, regardless of his own result.

    Having been suspended for three months directly after the 2025 Australian Open, Sinner will have opportunities to gain ground on Alcaraz this spring, and potentially regain the world No 1 ranking.

    However, the Spaniard could give himself a comfortable cushion ahead of that period.

    Alcaraz’s potential ranking points

    Semi-final loss: 12,450 points
    Final loss: 12,950 points
    Title: 13,650 points

    Sinner’s potential ranking points

    Quarter-final loss: 9,900 points
    Semi-final loss: 10,300 points
    Final loss: 10,800 points
    Title: 11,500 points

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  • Coco Gauff speaks out about racket smash and her serve after brutal Australian Open loss

    Coco Gauff has questioned the lack of privacy for players at the Australian Open after smashing her racket in frustration following her heavy loss to Elina Svitolina.

    An out of sorts Gauff lost 1-6, 2-6 to Svitolina in just 59 minutes in the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park on Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday.

    Following the match, the Australian Open‘s behind the scenes cameras picked up Gauff smashing her racket in the corridor.

    In her post-match press conference, Gauff explained that she would prefer to release her frustration in the way she did instead of directing it at her team.

    “I think for me, I know myself, and I don’t want to lash out on my team,” said the world No 3. “They’re good people. They don’t deserve that, and I know I’m emotional.

    “So I just took the minute to go and do that. I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I don’t try to do it on court in front of kids and things like that, but I do know I need to let out that emotion.

    “Otherwise, I’m just going to be snappy with the people around me, and I don’t want to do that because they don’t deserve it. They did their best. I did mine. Just need to let the frustration out.”

    The two-time Grand Slam champion added: “I tried to go somewhere where I thought there wasn’t a camera because I don’t necessarily like breaking racquets, but I lost 1 and 2.

    “I broke one racquet on quarters, I think, or round of 16 of French Open and I said I would never do it again on court because I don’t feel like that’s a good representation.

    “I tried to go somewhere where they wouldn’t broadcast it, but obviously they did.

    “So maybe some conversations can be had because I feel like at this tournament the only private place we have is the locker room.”

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    Despite hitting five double faults and winning only 18% of her second serve points against Svitolina, Gauff feels she has made progress with her serve this year..

    “I think it is a step in the right direction,” assessed the 21-year-old American.

    “I feel like there’s definitely positives I can take, especially in my last match against Karolina [Muchova]. I feel like that moment was definitely a game I would usually throw in some doubles. So there are positives to take.

    “Is my serve where I want it to be? No. I definitely served well in some matches, but I feel like today it’s one of those shots that I would like to be the shot to get me out of trouble.

    “But I definitely can look back at this tournament and say that it has improved. I hope that the trend can continue upward. I definitely feel like we’re working on the right things.

    “The focus was making the second more reliable, which definitely is more reliable, but obviously I want to just continue that and then make the first serve a bit more aggressive, which I did use in moments in my previous matches, but I think more on a consistent basis.”

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  • Carlos Alcaraz banishes one big myth after breakthrough Australian Open win

    When Carlos Alcaraz announced he was splitting with his long-term coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, the shockwaves that went through tennis would appear to have left us all a little more dazed than the icon in the centre of the storm.

    For those of us who saw Alcaraz and Ferrero as a duo who shared a bond akin to a father and son relationship, the prospect of seeing the world No 1 taking to the court without his mentor was hard to imagine.

    Yet the reality appears to be that the image we had of Carlitos and the former French Open champion who has been by his side as he lifted all six of his Grand Slam titles was a little misleading.

    While Ferrero was hugely influential in building Alcaraz into a tennis superstar, the finished product he helped to mould is more than good enough to thrive without him.

    Alcaraz is no longer a novice and as one of the world’s premier athletes, he is clearly keen to make more of his own decisions and that is where the advice and instruction from Ferrero appeared to lose some of its impact.

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    The team around Alcaraz is vast and Sami Lopez appears to have a strong bond with the champion trying to join the elite list of players who have won all four Grand Slam titles by lifting his first Australian Open crown on Sunday.

    We were all looking to identify any dip in focus, form or tactical acumen from Alcaraz at this year’s Australian Open, but his sensational performance against Alex de Minaur was more than enough for him to secure a 7-5, 6-2, 6-1 win that sent out a defiant message to any of his doubters.

    This was a breakthrough win as it booked Alcaraz’s first appearance in an Australian Open semi-final, where he will play Alexander Zverev on Friday and he heads into that match in buoyant mood.

    Alcaraz looks stronger, faster and more relaxed than at any point in his career, with the perception that his camp was in turmoil after Ferrero’s exit already banished.

    “Alcaraz at his best,” declared former British No 1 Tim Henman on TNT Sports.

    “He’s just got so many different options. His backhand impressed me so much tonight that he was flattening out and taking it on, flying just over the net cord, taking it wide from De Minaur.

    “Once Alcaraz got that first set under his belt, you just felt like there was a shift of gears. He had another gear to go to, and he was so aggressive, so dominant in every aspect. Yeah, 6-2-6-1 was one-way traffic.”

    De Minaur played well for the first set of his latest match against Alcaraz, but Henman was right to suggest that once the back of the match was broken by the Spaniard as he took the first set, he had the freedom to move through the gears and blow his Aussie opponent away.

    It was telling that Alcaraz reserved special words for his father in his post-match interview, as he thanked him for all his support and suggested he was proud to be living out the dreams he dreamed up for his son.

    “Having my brother and my dad here, part of my family, my uncle as well, it’s been great so far, and I’m just really proud,” said Alcaraz in his on-court speech.

    “I’m really happy to see my dad because, you know, these things we experience and living these kinds of things, it was his dream when he was playing tennis. I’m just really proud to see him making his dream with me.”

    Those words were telling, with the perception that Ferrero was Alcaraz’s father figure in tennis already close to being banished.

    The contribution Ferrero made to Alcaraz’s career will never be forgotten, but it is clear that Alcaraz is now his own man and he is loving every second of him first tournament without his one-time mentor.

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  • Coco Gauff’s ‘shocking’ Australian Open display could cause ‘scar tissue’ – former world No 4

    Coco Gauff’s performance in her one-sided 2026 Australian Open defeat to Elina Svitolina has been described as “shocking” by former world No 4 Tim Henman.

    The two-time Grand Slam champion suffered a crushing 1-6, 2-6 loss to 12th-ranked Svitolina in just 59 minutes in the quarter-finals of the Melbourne major.

    Gauff had a nightmare day on serve as she held in just two of her eight service games, having won only 41% of her first serve points and a brutal 18% of points on her second serve. The 21-year-old American hit five double faults on the 11 points she played on her second serve.

    The world No 3 was also badly out of sorts from the baseline as she hit just three winners and committed 21 groundstroke unforced errors.

    Speaking on TNT Sports, Henman expressed concerns that Gauff’s display will “do damage mentally” and leave “scar tissue.”

    “We all have bad days at the office, but I think in the context of being the favourite going into that match, she’s a Grand Slam champion, she’s won the French Open, she’s won the US Open, she’s three in the world… I mean, that was a shocking performance, there’s no two ways about it,” said the former British No 1.

    “Svitolina just took advantage, but when you get the top player who can really only kick that first serve in, she was serving at a hundred and 25 kilometres an hour and then making so many mistakes from the back of the court, your assets of your game have just been completely stripped apart in front of our eyes, so that was that was pretty tough to watch.

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    “That can sort of kickstart you into action, but I think she was just playing so badly and this is, this result hasn’t just sort of come overnight as it were; we know that she’s been struggling.

    “There’s so much focus of attention and I think we all sympathise with Coco because she’s such a great competitor. She’s trying so hard to sort the forehand and the serve out.

    “But to get through to the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam and have a match like this, I mean, that must do damage mentally. I think there has to be some scar tissue.

    “You can’t just sort of say, ‘oh, we’ll forget about that and we move on.’ To think that she’s such a good player — she had three winners, 26 unforced errors in the match.

    “And that’s that’s impossible to compete really at any level. So, yeah, it was hardly surprising to see her frustration at the end.”

    Svitolina will face world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the Australian Open semi-finals.

    Watch the Australian Open on Eurosport, TNT Sports, HBO Max and discovery+

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    The post Coco Gauff’s ‘shocking’ Australian Open display could cause ‘scar tissue’ – former world No 4 appeared first on Tennis365.

  • Australian Open: Novak Djokovic told what he ‘shouldn’t say’ about Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner

    Tennis great Mats Wilander thinks Novak Djokovic is making a mistake by publicly acknowledging the superiority of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

    Alcaraz and Sinner are ranked first and second and they have each secured four of the last Grand Slam titles since Djokovic won his most recent major at the 2023 US Open.

    The dominant pair faced off in the finals at the last three Grand Slams, and they are heavy favourites to make it four in a row at the 2026 Australian Open.

    Djokovic, the world No 4, is widely considered to be the third best player in men’s tennis behind Alcaraz and Sinner.

    The 38-year-old Serb has repeatedly acknowledged the gap after Alcaraz and Sinner in recent months, including after his third round Australian Open win, when he admitted the duo are playing at a “different level” to everyone else.

    The 24-time major champion did, though, assert at the start of his campaign in Melbourne that he still believes he “can beat anybody.”

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    In his column for L’Equipe, former world No 1 Wilander expressed his surprise at Djokovic’s admissions about Alcaraz and Sinner.

    “Of course, Novak Djokovic is a bit slower than before, but he still plays incredibly well,” said the seven-time Grand Slam winner.

    “He serves just as effectively, his forehand is extremely powerful, and frankly, I can’t imagine him losing before the semi-finals, because it doesn’t matter who his opponent is, as long as their name isn’t Sinner or Alcaraz.

    “Novak has a lot of confidence against all his potential opponents, except for those two.

    “I’m surprised he keeps saying so often that they’re the best in the world and that they’re so much better than him. Whether it’s true or not, even if it’s kind of him, he shouldn’t say it.

    “He’s probably trying to take the pressure off himself and make people forget that he’s still a contender for the biggest things.

    “I don’t think it’s a strategy, though; it’s just his philosophy. He sees the world clearly; with him, it’s black or white.”

    Djokovic will face world No 5 Lorenzo Musetti in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

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    The post Australian Open: Novak Djokovic told what he ‘shouldn’t say’ about Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner appeared first on Tennis365.