Sinner, Keys Kick-Start Australian Open Title Defense With Pair Of Wins

Jannik Sinner, Australian Open
Jannik Sinner (photo: Jürgen Hasenkopf)

MELBOURNE/WASHINGTON, January 20, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)

Defending champions Jannik Sinner of Italy and Madison Keys of the United States returned to the Australian Open on Tuesday each looking to continue their winning ways that brought them good fortunes a year ago. 

First, Keys opened the day session on Rod Laver Arena with a straight-set victory over Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine. Then, the four-time major winner Sinner’s first-round match against Hugo Gaston was cut short when the Frenchman retired suddenly after the second set.

Another record-setting crowd made its way to Melbourne Park to see the conclusion of the first round of men’s and women’s singles and the start of men’s and women’s doubles. A total of 98,295 were on hand throughout Tuesday – a first Tuesday Day/Night session attendance record that broke the old record of 90,102 set last year. Over 300,000 fans have attended the first three days of the 15-day main draw.

Sinner advances after Gaston retires

Two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner made a successful return to Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday evening. However, his evening was cut short after Hugo Gaston, the World No. 2’s opponent, retired after the conclusion of the second set due to illness. Sinner had gone ahead two sets to love on Rod Laver Arena, 6-2, 6-1, after just an hour and eight minutes.

The No. 2 seed Sinner accumulated 19 winners – including six aces – and won 86 percent (25 of 29) of his first-serve points. He had converted four of seven break points and was ahead on total points won 58-34. It was Sinner’s 15th straight win at Melbourne Park.

 

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The 24-year-old Italian star, who is aiming to become just the fourth player in history to win three consecutive men’s singles titles in Melbourne, came into his first-round match against the 93rd-ranked Frenchman confident of victory – after all, he had beaten Gaston twice in two meetings, both in straight sets – and had never lost a Grand Slam match to a player ranked as low as Gaston.

During his on-court interview, Sinner said he was “very happy” with how he started. “A bit of tension, but now it’s time to enjoy. The hard work is done. We practice for moments like this so I’m happy to be back,” he said.

“I’m going to aim to … be a bit more unpredictable as a player, because I think that’s what I have to do, trying to become a better tennis player,” Sinner said Friday during his pre-tournament news conference. 

“All small details, [but] when you are at the top level … the small details make the difference,” Sinner added.

While it’s highly likely that another Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz major final could happen – they met in three of the four Grand Slam finals last year – the four-time major champion Sinner knows he has to be ready to take on all comers.

“It’s not only for one specific player … if you add something to your game, the aim is to get better as a tennis player,” Sinner said. 

“It’s not about beating one guy, it’s more about feeling comfortable in every situation. That’s what we tried to do in the off-season.”

Keys embraces pressure of being a champion

After Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova and Jessica Pegula, respectively the world’s No. 3, 4 and 6 players in the WTA rankings, all posted first-round victories on Monday, it was World No. 9 Madison Keys‘s turn to shine – and to begin defense of her 2025 Australian Open title. However, her 7-6 (6), 6-1 win was anything but ordinary.

Opening play Tuesday afternoon on Rod Laver Arena against 92nd-ranked Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine, a woman on a mission who was making her Grand Slam and WTA Tour-level debut, it was anything but a walk in Melbourne Park for the ninth-seeded Keys. That’s because the pesky Oliynykova kept Keys off-key and back-footed – passive and timid – with a variety of slice-and-dice forehand returns and moon balls to offset the strength and power of the defending champion. For a while it worked.

The Ukrainian jumped out to a 4-0 double-break lead before Keys got over her nervous start. Game by game, Keys erased both of the breaks. Once she got the set to a tiebreaker, the American fired off four straight winners, from 4-6 and two set points down, and never looked back. After pulling out the first set that took over 70 minutes, it was full speed ahead for the 30-year-old Keys, who needed less than 30 minutes to close out her eight straight win in Melbourne.

By the conclusion of the one-hour, 40-minute first-round contest, Keys made the right adjustments to overcome Oliynykova. She hit 26 winners to 37 unforced errors and converted six of nine break points, compared to seven winners and 22 unforced errors for Oliynykova. Keys outpointed her opponent 80-61. 

Although Oliynykova lost the match, she stayed and signed autographs for fans. Then, as she walked off the court, Oliynykova smiled and waved to the crowd. She formed a heart with her hands, filled with gratitude for the experience of playing on Rod Laver Arena.

Later, during her post-match news conference Oliynykova said: “I was hearing that I will not be in top 1000, then in top 500, in top 300, and in top 100,” Oliynykova said. “All these people telling me that I won’t be able to progress with this game style. But, actually, you know, my idea is to do my ‘weird’ things on court, but to be the best player with this type of game.

“I saw today, even with one of the best players in the world, it could be really uncomfortable. I will probably try to keep improving in this and not typical game style.”

During her on-court interview, Keys credited Hall of Famer and her former coach Lindsay Davenport for helping her embrace the pressure of being the defending AO champion.

“I was talking to Lindsay yesterday, and she reminded me that not many people have the privilege of being a defending grand slam champion,” Keys said. 

 

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Later, during her post-match news conference, Keys gave props to her opponent: “It’s just been a really long time to play someone who plays that style, but she does it so effectively. They’re so high and they’re so deep. It was really hard. I felt like I couldn’t really take a swing volley or kind of like take it off of the bounce just because she hits such a good ball off of that.”

Next, Keys will play fellow American Ashlyn Krueger, ranked 62nd, who defeated No. 89 Sara Bejlek of Czechia, 6-3, 6-3, in one hour and 20 minutes on ANZ Arena.

Shelton, Fritz lead American 1-2 charge

World No. 7 Ben Shelton of the United States took on fellow lefty Ugo Humbert of France, a tough opponent to begin a Grand Slam draw with – and pulled through with a hard-fought 6-3, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (5) win in two hours and 37 minutes on Rod Laver Arena. 

The eighth-seeded Shelton was a semifinalist in Melbourne last year and Humbert was runner-up in Adelaide last week. The 33rd-ranked Frenchman was previously unbeaten against lefthanded players at the majors, but Shelton pulled through behind 15 aces and 43 overall winners. He converted three of 10 break points and outpointed Humbert 115-95.

“Obviously, playing Ugo in the first round is a tough draw, on a court like this or anywhere,” said Shelton, one of 11 American men to advance to the second round. “For me, it’s just about focusing on what I’ve been working on and the areas I’m trying to improve.”

Meanwhile, over on John Cain Arena, American No. 2 Taylor Fritz, seeded ninth, survived 89th-ranked Valentin Royer of France, 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-1, 6-3, in three hours and two minutes. The World No. 9 Fritz struck 65 winners – 24 of them were aces – and converted six of 21 break points. He outpointed Royer 143-117.

Next, Fritz, who reached the 2024 AO quarterfinals, will play Czechia’s Vit Kopriva, ranked 101st, who went the distance to beat No. 86 Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany, 4-6, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1, in three hours and eight minutes on Court 7.

Bencic now 6-0 to start 2026 season

After going 5-0 in singles at the recent United Cup, in-form World No. 10 Belinda Bencic of Switzerland continued her winning streak by defeating 113th-ranked Katie Boulter of Great Britain, 6-0, 7-5, in one hour and 27 minutes on Margaret Court Arena.

The Swiss star crafted 11 winners and converted five of 11 break points against Boulter and outpointed her 63-40 in advancing to the second round. Bencic’s latest win extended her active singles winning streak to 12 matches dating back to last season, which matches the longest tour-level run of her career.

Asked about her winning streak during her post-match news conference, Bencic said: “I think I definitely improved in my movement, I would say. I also think my serve got more steady, better. I would say my net game, as well. I can see that mostly in practice. I still try to incorporate it a little bit more in matches. I mean, obviously I’m very good at taking the swing volleys. But I think the regular volley also got better.”

Monfils bids farewell to Melbourne

Gaël Monfils, who was making his 69th Grand Slam appearance and competing at Melbourne for the 20th and final time, bowed to 182nd-ranked Australian qualifier Dane Sweeny on KIA Arena, 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-4, 7-5, in three hours and 51 minutes. Monfils finished with 14 aces and struck 58 winners while also making 77 unforced errors. 

Like fellow veteran Stan Wawrinka, the 39-year-old Frenchman recently announced that 2026 will be his last season on the ATP Tour. A win would have allowed Monfils to claim the record for most AO men’s singles match-wins by a French player, moving ahead of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. But it wasn’t meant to be. Instead, Monfils finished with a 37-20 record at Melbourne Park. He was twice a quarterfinalist, in 2016 and 2022. Sweeny will face American No. 1 Ben Shelton in the second round.

 

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Afterward, the showman Monfils was invited by tournament director Craig Tiley to address the crowd. He said:

“First of all, thank you so much for this amazing ride. For me, my journey here with you guys started in 2003, when I came here for the first time,” Monfils said. “Now we are in 2026 and somehow it is the finish line but thank you so much for this amazing ride. You have been unbelievable, so thank you so much.”

“I’ve got a lot of great memories here. A couple of big battles. Quarters, fourth round, even today was almost four hours. For Dane, you guys did an amazing job [supporting him]. I read his story. This kid got hurt, so I really wish [him] good luck for the next one, because he is playing very good. Good luck to him.

“I am very grateful. I’ve been very lucky to play here for many years, so lastly thank you very much Merci beaucoup, a bientot les amis (Thank you very much, see you soon, friends).” 

 

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Around the Australian Open

• World No. 5 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy advanced to the second round after Belgium’s Raphael Collignon was forced to retire in the fourth set. Musetti led the 72nd-ranked Collignon, 4-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5, 3-2. Next, Musetti will face fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego, ranked 40th, who defeated No. 99 Carlos Taberner of Spain, 6-4, 6-0, 6-3. 

Another Italian, No. 22 seed Luciano Darderi advanced past No. 82 Cristian Garin of Chile, 7-6 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (3) to earn his first AO main-draw victory. Next, he will face No. 36 Sebastian Baez of Argentina, who improved to 8-1 after withstanding 30 aces from No. 61 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France. Baez won 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, in three hours and 11 minutes.

• Among the other men’s seeds who advanced: No. 15 Karen Khachanov of Russia; No. 16 Jakub Mensik of Czechia; and No. 31 Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece. Both Khachanov and Mensik needed five sets to advance to the second round, while Tsitsipas got the job done in four.

• Among the men’s seeds who were upset: No. 23 Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands, who lost to No. 80 Ethan Quinn of the United States, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2, an hour and 37 minutes on Court 14; and No. 28 Joao Fonseca of Brazil, who fell to No. 85 Eliot Spizzirri of the United States, 6-4, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, in two hours and 38 minutes on 1573 Arena.

• Among the other women’s seeds who advanced: No. 5 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan; No. 16 Noami Osaka of Japan; No. 24 Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia; and No. 31 Anna Kalinskaya of Russia.

Wearing a white wide-brimmed hat and carrying a parasol featuring a white transparent veil, the four-time major winner Osaka made the biggest impression of the day when she walked out on Rod Laver Arena for the last match of Day 3 on the biggest of the show courts at Melbourne Park. Her Nike and Robert Wun-designed “ensemble” also included: white flared trousers, a jellyfish-inspired tunic and white butterflies attached to her hat and parasol.

It took a while but Osaka found the tennis to match her fashion style and she defeated No. 65 Antonia Ruzic of Croatia, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, in two hours and 22 minutes to advance.

• Among the women’s seeds who were upset: No. 18 Liudmila Samsonova, who lost to No. 48 Laura Siegemund of Germany, 0-6, 7-5, 6-4, in two hours and 31 minutes on 1573 Arena; No. 22 Leylah Fernandez of Canada, who fell to 59th-ranked Janice Tjen of Indonesia, 6-2, 7-6 (1), in one hour and 43 minutes on ANZ Arena; and No. 30 Maya Joint of Australia, who lost to No. 54 Tereza Valentova of Czechia, 6-4, 6-4, in one hour and 32 minutes on John Cain Arena.

• Going the distance: There were seven men’s singles matches on Tuesday that went five sets. The longest of them went four hours and 21 minutes, won by 88th-ranked Australian wild card James Duckworth over 127th-ranked lucky loser Dino Prizmic of Croatia, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3. Duckworth will face two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner in the second round.

Tuesday’s Australian Open results

Wednesday’s Australian Open order of play

By the numbers

• Defending women’s singles champion Madison Keys lost her first-ever main draw match at the Australian Open. It was as a wild card against Zheng Jie of China in the 2012 first round. Since then, she has won all of her first-round matches in Melbourne and is now 11-1 after her first-round victory over Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine.

• Janice Tjen is the first Indonesian woman to play in the Australian Open main draw since 2004 and the first to win a round at this event since 1998.

“Quotable …”

“I always say it is more important to be a good human being than a good tennis player. It was just my instinct to help her, and I think everyone would do the same. I’m happy I got to help.”

– Qualifier Zeynep Sonmez of Turkey, as told to BBC Sport. On Sunday, during her first-round win over No. 11 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia, Sonmez came to the aid and rescue of a ball kid, who was struggling near the umpire’s chair. The 112th-ranked Sonmez hurried over to the girl and helped her remain upright. Then, she helped her over to a nearby seat in the shade, where she received medical attention.

 

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