Novak Djokovic went on night duty for the third consecutive night at Melbourne Park and snapped a 30-match winning streak.
Djokovic, who is seeking a record-extending 25th grand slam, will face Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who toppled veterans Andy Murray and Gael Monfils, this week.
“I haven’t seen him play but he beat Monfils and Murray pretty comfortably in both matches,” said the 10-time Australian Open champion, who beat Etcheverry in last year’s ATP 1000 events in Paris and Rome.
“I’ll have to do my homework and see how he plays these matches. He’s obviously playing the tennis of his life, perhaps on hard courts. Tomas is a great guy. I get along very well with him and his team.
“I will try to learn from our previous matches. I need to be very, very prepared and ready for this.”
US Open champion Coco Gauff plays American Alycia Parks during the day session at Margaret Court Arena following Jannik Sinner’s match against Sebastian Baez.
What is Friday’s order of play?
(All times GMT)
Rod Laver Arena
Starting from 1 am: (28) Lesia Tsurenko (Ukr) v (2) Aryna Sabalenka (Blr), Luca Van Assche (Fra) v (7) Stefanos Tsitsipas (Gre)
From 8 am: (1) Novak Djokovic (Ser) v (30) Tomas Martin Etcheverry (Arg), Storm Hunter (Australia) v (9) Barbora Krejcikova (Cze)
Margaret Court Arena
Starting from 1 am: (4) Jannik Sinner (Ita) – (26) Sebastian Baez (Arg), Alycia Parks (USA) – (4) Coco Gauff (USA)
From 8 am: Maria Timofeeva (Russia) v (10) Beatriz Haddad Maia (Bra), (29) Sebastian Korda (USA) v (5) Andrey Rublev (Russia)
John Cain Arena
From 12 am: Amanda Anisimova (USA) v Paula Badosa Gibert (Spa), (12) Taylor Harry Fritz (USA) v Fabian Marozsan (Hun), (10) Alex De Minaur (Australia) v Flavio Cobolli (Ita)
kia arena
From 12 am: Tomas Machac (Czech Republic) v (15) Karen Khachanov (Russia), Magdalena Frech (Pol) v Anastasia Zakharova (Russia), (20) Adrian Mannarino (Fra) v (16) Ben Shelton (USA), John Millman (Australia) ) & Edward Winter (Aus) v (2) Rohan Bopanna (Ind) & Matthew Ebden (Aus)
1573 Arena
From 12 am: Alexander Erler (Automatic) & Lucas Miedler (Automatic) – Max Purcell (Australia) & Jordan Thompson (Australia), Daniel Altmaier (Germany) & Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela (Mexico) – (3) Rajeev Ram (USA) & Joe Salisbury (Gbr), Elina Avanesyan (Russia) – Marta Kostyuk (Ukr), Daria Saville (Australia) & Ajla Tomljanovic (Australia) – (2) Su-Wei Hsieh (Tpe) & Elise Mertens (Bel)
Court 3
From 12 am: Laslo Djere (Ser) & Christopher O’Connell (Australia) v (16) Rinky Hijikata (Australia) & Jason Kubler (Australia), Linda Noskova (Czech) & Xiyu Wang (Chn) v Fang-Hsien Wu (Tpe) & Lin Zhu (Chn), Mirra Andreeva (Russia) – Diane Parry (Fra), Andreas Mies (Germany) and John-Patrick Smith (Australia) – Thanasi Kokkinakis (Australia) and Alexei Popyrin (Australia)
When will the Australian Open finals be held?
The women’s final is on Saturday, January 27, and the men’s final is the next day: January 28.
How to watch the Australian Open on TV in the UK?
In the UK, Eurosport has broadcast rights to the live action from Melbourne and will broadcast 260 hours of tennis. An Entertainment and Sports pass to watch on Discovery+ costs £6.99 per month or £59.99 per year.
This year Nick Kyrgios will be part of Eurosport’s English commentary team and will be one of the highlights of the camera feed directly from the commentary booth. Kyrgios will be joined by hosts John McEnroe, Barbara Schett and Laura Robson in Australia and new host Rachel Stringer from a studio in London.
How to watch the Australian Open on TV in the USA?
ESPN has broadcast rights to show the tournament.
Who are the last champions?
Last year, Novak Djokovic won the men’s singles title for the record-breaking 10th time after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Aryna Sabalenka won her first grand slam singles title by defeating Elena Rybakina in three sets in the women’s draw.
latest odds
To win the men’s championship
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Novak Djokovic 11/10
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Carlos Alcaraz7/2
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Jannik Sinner 11/2
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Daniil Medvedev 9/1
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Aleksandr Zverev 25/1
To win the women’s championship
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Iga Swiatek 2/1
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Aryna Sabalenka15/4
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Coco Gauff 5/1
Which British players are taking part?
In the men’s draw, Andy Murray and Dan Evans were defeated in the opening round, while Jack Draper was eliminated in the second round. Cameron Norrie is the last remaining English player.
For women, Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter managed to advance to the second round, but could not advance to the third round. Jodie Burrage was eliminated in the first round.
When did the Australian Open start?
The tournament started on Sunday, January 14. This was the first Sunday start in the tournament’s history.
How much is the Australian Open prize money?
This year’s Australian Open total prize money represents a record 13 percent increase over 2023; £46.3 million will be shared by the field with the winners worth £1.68 million each.
“We have increased prize money for each round at the Australian Open, with major increases in qualifying and the first rounds of singles and doubles,” Tiley said. “We want to ensure that Australia remains the starting point for the global tennis season and that players and their teams have everything they need to help them play their best and continue to enjoy slam happy.”
