Second round singles action concludes on Thursday in Melbourne.
A round after ousting former World No.8 Cameron Norrie, Matteo Berrettini’s draw gets no easier, as he faces former World No.4 Holger Rune on Thursday. And a round after being pushed to five sets by a complete unknown, Daniil Medvedev faces impressive American teenager Learner Tien. Plus, breakout sensation Joao Fonseca tries to follow-up on his thrilling upset over Andrey Rublev, against Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego.
WTA second round action on Day 5 is highlighted by 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu taking on former Roland Garros semifinalist Amanda Anisimova.
Thursday also sees Jannik Sinner, Iga Swiatek, and many other top seeds take to the court.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s four most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Thursday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Emma Raducanu vs. Amanda Anisimova – 11:00am on Kia Arena
Raducanu just cannot seem to stay healthy. She’s battled multiple injuries since her 2021 US Open triumph, most recently withdrawing from Auckland two weeks ago due to a back injury. So her tight two-set victory over the 26th seed, Ekaterina Alexandrova, was her first match of 2025. Emma now tries to overcome an 0-3 record in the second round of the Australian Open, the round in which she’s lost in all of the last three years.
Anisimova has also had multiple layoffs from the tour in recent years, due to both injuries and mental health breaks. And she withdrew from the Hobart quarterfinals just a week ago, citing illness. But Amanda comfortably won her opening round, and she’s advanced to the fourth round of this event in three of her five appearances.
Their first career meeting should be a close one, as both come into this match at less than 100%, and they shared nearly identical match records in 2024. I give the advantage to Anisimova, as she is the bigger ball striker, and her backhand remains a formidable weapon.
Joao Fonseca (Q) vs. Lorenzo Sonego – Last on 1573 Arena
Fonseca put the tennis world on notice with his electrifying straight-set upset of ninth-seeded Andrey Rublev on Tuesday night, his Major debut. The 18-year-old possesses all the necessary tools to become a huge star in this sport: a great serve, powerful groundstrokes, plenty of guile, and an engaging and outgoing personality. Joao has now won 14 straight matches at all levels, dating back to the Next Gen Finals last month, and he’s now claimed all 19 sets he’s contested this season.
Sonego eliminated former champion Stan Wawrinka in four sets on Tuesday, to reach the second round here for a fifth straight year. But it’s been nearly two years since he’s advanced farther at a Major, and Lorenzo was a subpar 20-29 last year at tour level. The Italian also doesn’t have the firepower of someone like Rublev, so Fonseca should be able to control the rallies rather comfortably.
A year ago in Bucharest on clay, Joao beat Lorenzo in two prolonged sets. Fonseca does not strike me as a young player who is going to suffer from an emotional letdown following a big win – he expected to win that match, and expects himself to achieve a whole lot more. I like Joao’s chances of remaining undefeated at Majors as his debut at this level continues.
Matteo Berrettini vs. Holger Rune (13) – Not Before 5:00pm on John Cain Arena
In his four-set victory over Norrie, Berrettini served excellently. He struck 32 aces, won 85% of first serve points, and was not broken, saving five break points. Matteo now vies to advance beyond the second round of a Slam for the first time in 18 months, as he’s 0-3 in this round of late, and also missed the first two Majors of 2024 due to injury.
After a breakout 2022, Rune plateaued during 2023 and 2024. Since April of last year, his ranking has dipped outside of the top 10, and he has failed to advance beyond the fourth round in his last five Major appearances. Holger also hasn’t reached a final at any ATP event in over a year now. His coaching team has been a bit of a revolving door of late, but he recently reunited with his childhood coach, Kenneth Carlsen. The 21-year-old required five sets to defeat Zhizhen Zhang in the first round.
Berrettini took their first meeting back in 2022, but Rune has taken the last three, though the Italian retired from one of those matches, and the other two went the distance. On Thursday, I consider Matteo as the slight favorite. This is as healthy and match-tough as he’s been at a Major in quite awhile, and his last two losses in the second round of Slams both came against two current top four players (Sinner, Fritz). If Berrettini can serve nearly as well as he did on Tuesday, he should advance.
Learner Tien (Q) vs. Daniil Medvedev (5) – Last on Margaret Court Arena
Medvedev survived quite a scare in the first round, coming from two-sets-to-one down against the 414th-ranked player in the world, Kasidit Samrej. A three-time finalist here within the last few years, Daniil will now look to advance a bit more easily through the draw, a year after he played 30 out of a possible 35 sets through seven rounds, and arrived at the final rather depleted.
Tien is a 19-year-old who was the runner-up of the boys’ singles events at both the Australian Open and the US Open during 2023. During 2024, he won 63 matches, mostly at Futures or Challenger events, and achieved nine finals, winning seven titles. After coming through qualifying last week, he claimed a four-hour five-setter in his opening round. Learner is a lefty who breaks serve rather frequently, and is quite speedy around the court. Tennis Abstract has a detailed breakdown of his game here.
Can the young American challenge a rusty Medvedev, who just arrived in Australia a few days prior to this fortnight due to the birth of his second child? I feel he can, but I also expect Daniil to considerably lift his level from Tuesday. The three-time finalist remains the favorite in what should be an intriguing contest.
Other Notable Matches on Thursday:
Rebecca Sramkova vs. Iga Swiatek (2) – Swiatek overcame Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday in straight sets. Sramkova is a 28-year-old Slovakian who reached three WTA finals this past fall, and won her first main draw match at a Major on Tuesday.
Taylor Fritz (4) vs. Cristian Garin (Q) – Fritz has advanced to the second week at all of the last five Majors, and is coming off his first appearance in a final at the US Open. Garin is a recent top 20 player who is 1-2 against Fritz, though all three matches took place on clay.
Elena Rybakina (6) vs. Iva Jovic (WC) – Rybakina dropped just two games in her opening round against a 16-year-old Australian wild card. Jovic is a 17-year-old American wild card who dropped just three games in her opening round.
Tristan Boyer (Q) vs. Alex de Minaur (8) – De Minaur ousted Botic van de Zandschulp in the first round, as he looks to reach the quarterfinals at his fourth consecutive Major. Boyer is a 23-year-old American who won his first main draw match at a Slam on Tuesday in five sets, amidst his hometown being devasted by wildfires this past week.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Tristan Schoolkate (WC) – Sinner survived two tiebreak sets to prevail in straights over Nicolas Jarry. Schoolkate is a 23-year-old Australian wild card who has now defeated Taro Daniel in the first round of both of the last two Majors.
Renata Zarazua vs. Jasmine Paolini (4) – Paolini comfortably won her first round 6-0, 6-4. Zarazua is a 27-year-old from Mexico who claimed 50 matches last season at all levels, which included a first round upset of Caroline Garcia at the US Open.
Thursday’s full Order of Play is here.
