Physical Address
Suite 5, 181 High Street,
Willoughby North NSW 2068
Nick Kyrgios’ bizarre Novak drama spoof | 00:29
Alexander Zverev has progressed through to his third Australian Open semi-final on Tuesday afternoon, defeating Tommy Paul 7-6 (7-1), 7-6 (7-0), 2-6, 6-1 on Rod Laver Arena.
Watch every ball of The 2025 Women’s Ashes Series LIVE with no ad-breaks during play on Kayo | New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited time offer.
Zverev was dominant in crucial points at the end of the first and second set, where he won 14 of 15 tiebreak points to give himself a two-set lead over the American in the hot Melbourne sun. Paul managed to break the World No.2 twice in the third set to give the US a fleeting amount of hope, but Zverev was far too strong in the fourth and last.
Subsequently, Paul will be ruing his two missed set points on serve during the first and second set that could have seen him reach his second Aus Open semi-final in three years.
The German will now play the winner of tonight’s blockbuster between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.
Amid Zverev’s victory however, the 27-year-old blew up twice at the chair umpire in a matter of minutes during the second set, with a feather of all things briefly disrupting his momentum.
With Paul serving at 4-2 and deuce, a feather fell down on the court mid-rally and prompted chair umpire Nacho Forcadell to call a replay, much to the disgust of Zverev who was seemingly in control of the point.
Paul apologised to the second seed despite doing nothing wrong as he got another attempt at first serve, after faulting the first time, and he went onto win the point when a Zverev back hand crashed into the net, and his racquet almost ended up in pieces but for his self-restraint.
“It’s a feather. There’s millions of them on the court,” Zverev could be heard saying.
The bizarre feather drama came shortly after Zverev expressed his frustrations at losing a break point opportunity after a patron in the crowd yelled ‘out’ at a Paul serve which landed in the corner of the service box.
He then received a warning from the umpire for swearing during his blow-up, but it didn’t stop him from demolishing Paul in the second set tie-breaker 7-0.
Adding further insult to injury, Zverev had also been annoyed by the chair umpire’s let calls.
This Australian Open, the chair umpire is responsible for calling let rather than leaning on the automated system, which has been problematic itself over time.
Impressively, Zverev put all those issues aside to mount a stellar fight back to win the second set in a tiebreak to love after being 5-2 down in the set.
– Hewitt and Rafter share emotional moment –
Australian tennis legends Lleyton Hewitt and Pat Rafter shared a heartwarming moment as the pair won a Legends Doubles match together on Tuesday.
The two Australian men to most recently reach the world number one ranking combined for a 6-3 3-6 [10-8] win in a match tiebreak against American James Blake and German Tommy Haas on Kia Arena.
Hewitt showed he still has the fighting qualities he was renowned for, but has perhaps added a bit of flair to his game after spending so much time with Australia’s current crop of Davis Cup players as well as his son, Cruz, who made the second round of the juniors at Melbourne Park.
The Wimbledon and US Open champion pulled off three tweeners in one point as he dazzled the crowd.
Rafter, who was named Team World vice-captain for the Laver Cup on Sunday, on the other hand did not expect so much running to be involved, and had a hilarious response when asked in their on-court interview whether he had enjoyed himself.
“No,” the two-time US Open said with a chuckle as he got his breath back.
“It’s actually a lot of hard work, and Lleyton did most of it, but it was still enough work for me,” he added.
Hewitt then paid tribute to Rafter and shared what it meant with him to share the court together.
“This bloke was like a big brother to me when I came onto the tour and a massive role model,” he said.
“Come out to play this Legends event is a lot of fun.”
– US superstar stunned as blockbuster rematch spoiled –
Prior to the men’s match-up on Rod Laver Arena, Paula Badosa advanced to the final four of a grand slam for the first time with the 11th seed pulling off a stunning straight sets upset of third seed Coco Gauff.
Gauff was on a collision course with two-time defending champion, and world number one, Aryna Sabalenka, who plays tonight, in the semi-finals but Badosa prevented a blockbuster rematch between the rivals with a 7-5 6-4 win.
The Spaniard came out swinging with her forehand in particular proving to be lethal and her aggressive approach troubled Gauff throughout the one hour and 43 minute clash.
It is a remarkable turnaround for Badosa who has dealt with chronic back pain, including a stress fracture, in the last two years and she admitted post-match that she thought of quitting tennis as a result.
“A year ago, I was here with my back that I didn’t know if I had to retire from this sport,” she said in her on-court interview.
“Now I’m here playing against the best in the world. I won today. I’m in semifinals. So I would never think that a year after I would be.
“I’m a very emotional person. And overcoming something like this, the last Slam, the quarterfinals were very tough, so today, I came in, I wanted to play my best game.
“I think I did it. Coco at the beginning, she was playing insane tennis, but I’m super proud of the level I gave today.”
One break of serve at 5-5 was all Badosa needed to go on and clinch the opening set, after ramping up the intensity.
Gauff had earlier won eight straight service points, but Badosa was rock solid with her serve, not giving up a single break point opportunity in the first set.
The American never getting an opportunity to pounce allowed Badosa to place her under immense pressure, and she picked her moment to seize the advantage perfectly as she won one of the points of the tournament to give herself a break point, and then she claimed the very next point.
It was the first time Badosa had taken a set off a top ten player at a grand slam.
The second set was full of far more twists and turns, however.
Badosa needed almost 14 minutes and five break points to eventually break Gauff’s service game in the opening game of the set.
It went to eight deuces with the third seed cursing five unforced forehand errors and two double faults.
The match looked like being a lengthy one when Gauff broke back at 2-2 after claiming their two previous encounters in three sets after dropping the first.
With that slice of history as well as the pressure of chasing a maiden grand slam semi-final hanging over her, Badosa broke back in the very next game, held her own serve and then broke again to go 5-2 up.
The match into fast forward mode as Badosa continued to crack forehands and desperately chase down balls, before she stumbled with the finish line in sight.
Gauff gave one last push to break Badosa’s serve and then hold her own to give the Spaniard a second chance to serve for the match.
Badosa recomposed herself and an ace followed by a cracking forehand winner to seal the match was a fitting end for what was an mightily impressive display of ultra-aggressive tennis.
“I’ve been through a lot. I was in the past one of the best players in the world but I think now I’m a better player, more mature, I think I managed emotions a little bit better – not always, but sometimes,” she said.
Follow Day 10 of the Australian Open live below!
– Day 10 preview –
US superstar Coco Gauff is hoping to set up another blockbuster semi-final against two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka to kick off day 10 at the Australian Open.
Gauff and Sabalenka, the world No.3 and No.1 respectively, played what was arguably the true final of the 2024 tournament in the last four, with the Belarusian squeaking through 7-6(2) 6-4.
On Tuesday they attempt to book a rematch, but Gauff must first avoid a real threat in the form of No.11 seed Paula Badosa.
The Spaniard wasn’t in the greatest of form coming into the tournament, losing four of her previous five matches, but has only dropped one set on route to the quarter-finals. Gauff is the same, having lost the first set in her fourth round win over Belinda Bencic, taking advantage of the heat to run away with it in the second and third.
Sabalenka kicks off the night session against former French Open finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
On the men’s side, all eyes are on one of the biggest quarter-finals in grand slam history, as 24-time slam champion Novak Djokovic battles Carlos Alcaraz, the 21-year-old who can become the youngest man in history to complete the career slam if he claims the Australian Open title this week.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN DAY 10 ORDER OF PLAY (All times AEDT)
Men’s and Women’s Singles Quarter-Finals
Rod Laver Arena
Day session from 11:30am
No.3 Coco Gauff (USA) vs No.11 Paula Badosa (ESP)
Not before 2pm
No.12 Tommy Paul (USA) vs No.2 Alex Zverev (GER)
Night session from 7pm
No.1 Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) vs No.27 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS)
No.7 Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs No.3 Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)
