MELBOURNE: Aryna Sabalenka extended her reign as tiebreak queen to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for a fourth consecutive year and Carlos Alcaraz joined her as Daniil Medvedev’s campaign ended on Sunday.
Third seed Coco Gauff advanced to her third consecutive quarter-final with a thrilling 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory over tricky Czech Karolina Muchova in a late afternoon match at Margaret Court Arena, while Alexander Zverev and Alex de Minaur advanced.
But three-time finalist Medvedev received another harsh lesson from his new nemesis, Learner Tien, with the Russian losing 6-4, 6-0, 6-3 to the American again at Melbourne Park.
“He played very well, super aggressive. Even when I made good shots, he made a better shot in return,” Medvedev said. “I didn’t find many solutions today on the ground, which is rare, and I haven’t felt that often in my life.”
Tien progressed despite a nosebleed in the first set which required lengthy treatment. He later said his nose was just dry.
“Every year since I’ve been coming here, the crowd support has been incredible,” said Tien, the youngest men’s quarter-finalist at Melbourne Park since Nick Kyrgios in 2015.
Two-time champion and favorite Sabalenka was first out on a glorious morning, beating 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko 6-1, 7-6 (7/1) in a two-halves match.
The Belarusian was at her best as she crushed the teenager in a 31-minute opening set and took a 4-1 lead in the second before Mboko produced a thrilling fightback.
Beating Sabalenka twice to take a 6-5 lead, Mboko then hit a brick wall as the Belarusian raised her game to notch a 20th straight Grand Slam tie-break victory, eclipsing Novak Djokovic’s record of 19 between Wimbledon 2005 and 2007.
PUSHED HARD
Belarusian Sabalenka was full of praise for her young opponent.
“It’s amazing to see these kids coming onto the circuit,” said the world number one, who has reached 13 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals.
After knocking out a young gun, Sabalenka gets another chance in the quarterfinals against 18-year-old American Iva Jovic, who beat Kazakh veteran Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 6-1 at John Cain Arena.
The men’s tournament saw few surprises of the magnitude of Mboko and Jovic, with the round of 16 blanked by top seeds for the first time in a Grand Slam in the professional era.
Number one seed Alcaraz did his part to preserve the status quo despite arguably facing his toughest test this tournament against 19th seed Tommy Paul, a 2023 semifinalist.
Alcaraz appeared on cruise control in a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4, 7-5 victory in the afternoon sun at Rod Laver Arena.
The Spaniard has had problems in the past with accuracy and lack of consistency in his serving technique.
He now sports a new serve that has become a handy weapon – and has been compared to Djokovic’s serve.
“I got a message from Djokovic saying, ‘you have to pay me,’” he said during his on-court interview.
Once a tough matchup for Alcaraz, Paul has now lost on three Grand Slam surfaces to the Spaniard following last year’s quarter-final defeat at Roland Garros and his 2024 defeat at Wimbledon.
“I guess the way I would describe him is he chokes you in a way,” Paul said of Alcaraz. “It makes you feel like you don’t have time.”
LOCAL HERO
Alcaraz will next face Australia’s Alex de Minaur, who brushed aside 10th-seeded Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 to reach his second consecutive quarter-final at Melbourne Park.
“I’m very happy with my level, I can’t wait to play in the next one,” said De Minaur, who hopes to become the first Australian to win the tournament since his compatriot Mark Edmondson’s triumph fifty years ago.
“I’m going to have to pull out all my weapons and I’m excited to fight Carlitos.”
Last year’s runner-up Zverev remained on track in his quest for an elusive first Grand Slam title, beating Francisco Cerundolo 6-2, 6-4, 6-4.
Even as fourth-round action was taking place on court, Djokovic learned that he had reached the quarterfinals as his fourth-round opponent, Jakub Mensik, had withdrawn due to an abdominal injury a day before they were scheduled to meet.
As the leading men qualified, Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam champion, saw three match points slip through her fingers before prevailing in a real fight against Muchova, 19th seed, a former semi-finalist.
“She definitely raised her game and I thought I was a little passive at times,” said Gauff, who will next face Elina Svitolina after the Ukrainian beat Mirra Andreeva 6-2, 6-4.
Published in Dawn, January 26, 2026
