Jannik Sinner (15), Frances Tiafoe (16) and Felix Auger-Aliassime qualified for the third round of the Australian Open on Wednesday.the first two with solid strides and the third after going to the fifth set against Slovakian Alex Molcan.
The sinner prevailed in the new rainy season with a clear 6-3, 6-2 and 6-2 against Argentine Tomás Martín Etcheverry after one hour and 44 minutes.
“I am very happy to be in the next round and to do it also on this track (John Cain Arena) with the roof closed. I hope the rain stops in the next few days”, commented the Italian, who remained the only real candidate from in the transalpine country after the early dismissal of his compatriots Lorenzo Musetti and Matteo Berrettini.
His next opponent will be known after the clash between Hungarian Marton Fucsovics and South African Lloyd Harris.
For his part, Tiafoe ended the hopes of debutant chinom Shang Juncheng, 17, with a resounding 6-4, 6-4, 6-1 after connecting 20 direct kicks and 40 winners.
“I played against an incredible player. He will be and he is already a great player. It is difficult to play against someone so young”, said Tiafoe, who will cross paths with local Jason Kubler or the Russian Karen Khachanov (18).
Canadian Auger-Aliassime has no such convenient classificationa student of Toni Nadal, who again needed five sets to beat Slovakian Molcan 3-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 and 6-2 after three hours.
“I was trying to spend more time on the track in front of you guys,” he commented with a laugh before a grandstand overturned with the young man.
“The numbers show it, he was more consistent than me in the first two sets.“, he said. “In the end, what you need is not to fail,” he added.
His next obstacle is the Argentine Francisco Cerúndolo (28) or the French Corentin Moutet.
Source: La Verdad
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