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Novak Djokovic will next face French veteran Adrian Mannarino, but one remarkable statistic has emerged about the world No.1’s incredible Australian Open dominance.
And it spells the end of Mannarino’s impressive run this season.
Why? Because aside from being a 10-time Australian Open champion, Djokovic has only shown frailties against one particular subset of tennis players in recent years: the bespectacled kind.
Because today marks the 10 year anniversary of Djokovic’s last defeat at Melbourne Park… to a player not wearing on-court glasses.
His only defeats in that time came to Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin, in 2017, and South Korea’s Hyeon Chung the following year.
Of course, ten years ago Djokovic was defeated by eventual champion Stan Wawrinka in the 2014 quarter-finals.
9.30AM: WHY ‘UNBLEMISHED’ DEMON WILL TRIUMPH
Alex de Minaur faces the biggest test of his Australian Open to date in the form of fifth seed Andrey Rublev tonight.
The powerhouse Russian is a giant step up in class compared to De Minaur’s three vanquished foes, but retired Australian star John Millman is confident the Demon has what it takes to reach a maiden Melbourne Park quarter-final.
And knocking Novak Djokovic off Rod Laver Arena for the prime-time night match could be De Minaur’s secret weapon against the big-hitting Rublev.
“Andrey hits the absolute cover off the ball,” Millman said on Channel 9.
“I learned that first hand when he annihilated me in Shanghai, but Alex is one of the quickest guys on tour, so I think it’s in this night time condition on it’s going to be a little bit slower.
“I think he’s going to use his wheels to get into the point and he is quietly confident.”
De Minaur’s perfect start to 2024, which included a United Cup victory over Novak Djokovic, is more reason to be confident.
“He hasn’t lost in 2024 … his record has been unblemished and I think that he’ll take that confidence in with him,” Millman added.
“I’ve never seen him so relaxed at the Australian Open. I think he’s fresh, he’s ready to go.
“He’s just entered into the top ten for the first time in his career, and I think he has that belief now, which is a dangerous Alex de Minaur.”
9.10AM: DJOKER, DEMON, HEWITT: AUS OPEN’S BIGGEST DAY YET
Son of a gun Cruz Hewitt will begin his Australian Open Junior Championships campaign on Sunday after being granted a wildcard entry into the tournament.
The son of Australian tennis great Lleyton, the 15-year-old will take on American Alexander Razeghi in his opening match.
Cruz has been described as “one of the best young players in Australia”, with former Australian women’s star Alicia Molik likening his game to both his father and Nick Kyrgios.
Lleyton – a Wimbledon and US Open champion – will next week be honoured with a hall of fame ceremony and bronze bust at Melbourne Park.
Cruz is not the only son of a former tennis star competing in the junior tournament, with American Jagger Leach another player with famous bloodlines.
Leach is the son of Lindsay Davenport, who won the Australian Open in 2000 among three career grand slam singles wins.
Leach won his first-round match against Russian-born Daniil Sarksian on Saturday, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4.
— Chris Cavanagh
8.45AM: UKRANIAN STAR TORCHES ONLINE TROLLS
– Callum Dick
Ukrainian tennis star Lesia Tsurenko has hit out at online trolls who continue to celebrate her straight-sets defeat to Aryna Sabalenka.
Tsurenko, 34, was knocked out of the Australian Open on Friday 6-0 6-0 by reigning champion Sabalenka.
The two players had a shared history. At Indian Wells last year, Tsurenko withdrew from their scheduled third-round clash, later citing a panic attack brought on by an earlier conversation with WTA CEO Steve Simon about Russian and Belarusian players and the war in Ukraine.
World No.2 Sabalenka is a Belarusian player. She has repeatedly fielded questions about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
On Friday, Tsurenko and Sabalenka did not shake hands at the net as is the customary gesture at the end of a match. Instead the two players acknowledged each other with a wave.
It has become standard practice for Ukrainian players to not shake the hands of Russian and Belarusian rivals.
On Friday, Tsurenko said it was a “national position” that she would continue to observe – a point which did not sit well with online trolls.
Tsurenko hit out in an Instagram post on Saturday night to address the barrage of abuse she had received.
“I noticed that my loss yesterday made a lot of people happy. So my new post is for you,” Tsurenko wrote on Instagram.
“Please feel free to express whatever you want to me. I hope this will make you happy for a little bit longer.
“But you know, on the eve of the new year, my friend returned from Russian captivity after 1.5 years. Lost 55 kilograms of body weight and with an infection in his legs, but the main thing is that he is alive. This is real happiness.
“So I hope that you will also have real reasons to feel happy in your life, and not because of the loss of some random tennis player whom you have never even met in your life.”
8AM: WELCOME TO THE SECOND WEEK!
Hello and welcome from Melbourne Park, where – owing to the early start to the tournament last Sunday – we’re officially into the second week.
The fourth round is upon us, and that means the tennis is about to go up a gear.
We have a day-time treat today, with Novak Djokovic making a rare appearance in the Melbourne sun when he takes on Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in his first daytime fixture in 1075 days.
But first, American Coco Gauff has a chance to creep closer to another grand slam victory when she takes on Poland’s Magdalena French.
And, of course, tonight we have Australia’s Alex de Minaur and his quest for a maiden quarter-final appearance at his home slam. In his way is fifth seed Andrey Rublev, with that match set for the prime time slot on Rod Laver Arena tonight.
Originally published as Australian Open day 8 live: Novak Djokovic, Alex de Minaur in action in fourth round
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