Djokovic into the 4th round after winning his 100th Australian Open match
Defending women's champ Aryna Sabalenka, U.S. Open winner Coco Gauff advance
Novak Djokovic is starting to feel better about his health and his game, winning in straight sets in Melbourne on Friday for the first time this tournament with a 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (2) victory over Tomas Martin Etcheverry in his 100th Australian Open match.
The 24-time major winner is 92-8 at Melbourne Park, where he's won the title 10 times and is on a 31-match winning streak.
Only Roger Federer (117) and Serena Williams (105) have played more matches at the season's first major.
Djokovic has had health issues and been dealing with a sore right wrist. He lost sets in each of the first two rounds against 18-year-old Croatian qualifier Dino Primzic and Alexei Popyrin, when he challenged a heckler to "say that to my face."
Next up he faces 35-year-old Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, who won a five-setter for the third straight round to advance 7-6 (4), 1-6, 6-7 (2), 6-3, 6-4 over U.S. Open semifinalist Ben Shelton.
"I played better than I did in the first two rounds, so that's a positive change, I guess." Djokovic said. "Starting to feel better game-wise and physically, as well. It's positive signs [but] I still haven't been playing at my best."
Against Etcheverry, he didn't even face a breakpoint.
Not that No. 30 seed didn't challenge him, really going for his ground strokes and chasing down drop shots — to the point where he had to veer off court to avoid the net in the third set and nearly crashed into the umpire's chair.
Djokovic, as he got closer to victory, started to put his index finger to his ear after hitting winners, bringing more support and noise from the Rod Laver Arena crowd.
After closing with a pair of aces to move into the fourth round here for the 16th time, his celebration was calm.
"It was a great match," Djokovic said. "The best performance I had during this tournament. I'm pleased with he way I played, particularly the first two sets.
"He raised his level in the third set [and] we went toe-to-toe."
Djokovic took to the court when the match between lefthanders Mannarino and Shelton was going into the second set. He was in a post-match news news conference when the result of that match was relayed to him. Noted.
Djokovic beat Shelton in the U.S. Open semifinals one match before capturing his record 24th Grand Slam singles title, and there was tension in the wake of it.
Djokovic copied Shelton's "Hang up the phone!" celebration gesture after that win, and comments in the French media earlier this week confirmed he did mock it in retaliation to some unsporting provocation.
He elaborated Friday that Shelton was going on court believing he can challenge the best players in the world and "I don't dislike that at all."
"But there is obviously some kind of line, non-visible line, of acceptable behaviour I guess towards the other player," he said. "If a player steps over that line, then obviously it starts being annoying. That's when you react or you don't react, whatever. It just depends. That rematch will have to wait for another time.
Potential quarterfinalists in that section are 2023 Australian runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat Luca Van Assche 6-3, 6-0, 6-4, and No. 12 Taylor Fritz, who held off Fabian Morozsan 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.
No. 4 Jannik Sinner is in hot form in the bottom of this half of the draw, advancing to the round of 16 without losing a set after a 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Sebastian Baez. He next faces 15th-seeded Karen Khachanov, who beat Tomas Machac 6-4, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-6 (5).
In another night match, local hope Alex de Minaur continued his run with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-1. win over Flavio Cobolli.
Dabrowski wins mixed doubles opener
Ottawa's Gabriela Dabrowski and partner Nathaniel Lammons of the United States defeated wild cards Priscilla Hon and Adam Walton 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the Australian Open mixed doubles second round Friday.
Dabrowski and Lammons, who are seeded sixth, hit 26 winners compared to five for their Australian opponents and won 75 per cent of first-serve points to 48. They needed just 53 minutes to win.
WATCH l Dabrowski, Lammons advance to 2nd round:
The 31-year-old Dabrowski also advanced in women's doubles alongside Erin Routliffe of New Zealand. The fourth-seeded pair defeated American Ashlyn Krueger and the Czech Republic's Linda Fruhvirtova 6-1, 7-5 in their opening match on Thursday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe, the reigning U.S. Open champions, did not have to play their second-round match against Russians Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Veronika Kudermetova. Dabrowski and Routliffe advanced on a walkover.
Dabrowski is ranked seventh in women's doubles.
Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime is the lone Canadian remaining in singles action. He meets No. 3 seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia in the third round after defeating Hugo Grenier of France 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.
Sabalenka, Gauff advance
On the women's side on Friday, defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and U.S. Open winner Coco Gauff swept to commanding wins to reach the fourth round.
Second-seeded Sabalenka beat Lesia Tsurenko 6-0, 6-0 in 52 minutes while No. 4-seeded Gauff lost just two games in beating fellow American Alycia Parks 6-0, 6-2.
Sabalenka, who won her first Grand Slam title here 12 months ago, has dropped just six games in three rounds.
"Last year, Iga [Swiatek] won so many sets 6-0 and this is one of the goals, to try to get closer to her," Sabalenka joked. "I'm just super-happy with the level I'm playing so far. Hopefully I can just keep going like that or even better."
The pair did not shake hands — as is the convention for Ukrainian players against opponents from Russia or Belarus, where Sabalenka is from — but Tsurenko congratulated Sabalenka verbally.
Sabalenka will play Amanda Anisimova, who continued her comeback with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Paula Badosa. Anisimova, who took seven months out of the game last year for mental health reasons, hit 40 winners on her way to the fourth round.
"It's quite unbelievable," the American said. "For sure taking a step away from the game ... gave me a new perspective. I'm trying to be in the present. I think in the past I was getting too caught up in the past and the future."
Sabalenka said she expects a tough match against Anisimova, who has won four of their five matches.
"She's an incredible player and I'm really happy to see her back," Sabalenka said.
Gauff played an almost flawless match as she beat Parks in 61 minutes, making just eight unforced errors to the 34 of her less experienced opponent.
Sixteen-year-old Mirra Andreeva continued her remarkable Australian Open debut when she came from 5-1 down in the final set to beat Diane Parry of France 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (5).
The Russian player was in tears when she was one game from defeat but she produced a brilliant comeback, saving a match point at 2-5 before winning the deciding tiebreak 10-5.
With files from The Canadian Press
