Rafael Nadal appears to be like to be peaking on the proper time after brushing apart Fabio Fognini to succeed in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.
The second seed got here into the event with severe considerations over a again drawback however revealed after beating Britain’s Cameron Norrie within the third spherical that it had lastly began to enhance.
Fognini got here from two units all the way down to beat Nadal on the US Open in 2015 however, after failing to transform a lead within the second set, he swiftly succumbed to a 6-3 6-4 6-2 defeat.
Russian mates Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev will play one another for a spot within the final 4 after easy victories.
Reigning champion Novak Djokovic overcame a number of dips in type to beat Alexander Zverev 6-7, 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 and e book his place within the semi-finals on Tuesday, the place he’ll face shock qualifier Aslan Karatsev, who beat a bodily compromised Grigor Dimitrov. The 27-year-old from Russia is ranked 114th and wanted to undergo qualifying rounds simply to get into the principle draw of a serious for the primary time.
How have the Brits bought on?
It was not an excellent begin for the Brits as Katie Boulter fell to Daria Kasatkina within the first spherical 6-1 6-4 on the opening day. Twenty 4 hours later and British No1 Johanna Konta was pressured to retire within the second set of her match in opposition to Slovenia’s Kaja Juvan attributable to an stomach harm.
Francesca Jones, on her Grand Slam main-draw debut, made a promising begin in opposition to American Shelby Rogers earlier than finally dropping 6-4, 6-1 to a participant ranked virtually 200 locations increased. It left solely Heather Watson as the only real feminine Briton in the principle draw, the 28-year-old placing lack of preparation apart to beat Kristyna Pliskova and attain the second spherical. That was the place her adventures ended, nevertheless, as she misplaced to Anett Kontaveit 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-2.
Within the males’s draw, Cameron Norrie received the opening-round Battle of the Brits, beating thirtieth seed and British No1 Dan Evans 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 to succeed in the second spherical for the primary time. He then defeated Russia’s Roman Safiullin in 4 units to succeed in the final 32 for the primary time however got here up in opposition to Nadal, who ended his – and British – hopes in straight units.
Who’re this 12 months’s seeds?
Males’s seeds
- Novak Djokovic
- Rafael Nadal
- Dominic Thiem
- Daniil Medvedev
- Stefanos Tsitsipas
- Alexander Zverev
- Andrey Rublev
- Diego Schwartzman
- Matteo Berrettini
- Gael Monfils
- Denis Shapovalov
- Roberto Bautista Agut
- David Goffin
- Milos Raonic
- Pablo Carreno Busta
- Fabio Fognini
Ladies’s seeds
- Ashleigh Barty
- Simona Halep
- Naomi Osaka
- Sofia Kenin
- Elina Svitolina
- Karolina Pliskova
- Aryna Sabalenka
- Bianca Andreescu
- Petra Kvitova
- Serena Williams
- Belinda Bencic
- Victoria Azarenka
- Johanna Konta
- Garbine Muguruza
- Iga Swiatek
- Petra Martic
Australian Open match dates
- February 8 – Males’s and girls’s singles first spherical
- February 9 – Males’s and girls’s singles first spherical
- February 10 – Males’s and girls’s singles second spherical
- February 11 – Males’s and girls’s singles second spherical
- February 12 – Males’s and girls’s singles third spherical
- February 13 – Males’s and girls’s singles third spherical
- February 14 – Males’s and girls’s singles fourth spherical
- February 15 – Males’s and girls’s singles fourth spherical
- February 16 – Males’s and girls’s singles quarter-finals
- February 17 – Males’s and girls’s singles quarter-finals
- February 18 – Ladies’s semi-finals and first males’s semi-final
- February 19 – Second males’s semi-final
- February 20 – Ladies’s last
- February 21 – Males’s last
Who’s lacking on the Australian Open?
Roger Federer is probably the most high-profile absentee from Melbourne Park as he continues his restoration from double knee surgical procedure in 2020.
Former British No 1 Andy Murray additionally misses the occasion after testing constructive for Covid-19 and never with the ability to attain an settlement with the organisers over quarantining.
American John Isner opted to skip the event as a result of he did not wish to be away from his household for an prolonged time frame.
Within the ladies’s draw, Kiki Bertens is out with harm whereas Madison Keys and Amanda Anisimova withdrew after a constructive coronavirus check.
Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska examined constructive for a banned substance and appealed to the Courtroom of Arbitration for Sport. Nevertheless, the world No 29 misplaced her battle and can now depart from Australia, having travelled within the hope of successful her case.
The place to observe the Australian Open 2021 on TV
Eurosport has the rights to broadcast reside motion from Melbourne.
Protection begins at midnight on February 8 which is the beginning of the primary session of the event.
The UKTN will even present a one-hour highlights package deal from the fourth spherical onwards
New improvements
The Australian Open is the primary Grand Slam to have digital shot callers, as an alternative of line judges, on each match court docket at some point of the occasion.
Distant monitoring cameras across the courts will routinely ship the audio line calls, voiced by Australian front-line staff and different emergency companies personnel, in real-time.