Gauff calls for more player privacy after racquet smash
Coco Gauff calls for more privacy for players after she was filmed smashing a racquet after a devastating defeat by Elina Svitolina in the Australian Open quarter-finals.
Coco Gauff calls for more privacy for players after she was filmed smashing a racquet after a devastating defeat by Elina Svitolina in the Australian Open quarter-finals.
Carlos Alcaraz moved to within two wins of completing the Career Grand Slam on Tuesday at the Australian Open, where he powered into his first semi-final at Melbourne Park.
The World No. 1 absorbed and eventually neutralised the full force of Alex de Minaur’s newly sharpened attacking approach, sealing a statement 7-5, 6-2, 6-1 victory in front of a vibrant Rod Laver Arena crowd. Chasing his seventh major title — and his first in Melbourne — Alcaraz set up a semi-final clash with last year’s runner-up Alexander Zverev.
“I’m just really happy with the level that I’m playing every match, since the first round,” Alcaraz said. “I’ve been increasing my level each match. I was talking with my team about being patient, because I want all the things right now. But they told me to be patient, that the level will come. Today I felt really comfortable, playing great tennis, which I’m really proud about.”
FIRST AO SEMI-FINAL ✅@carlosalcaraz becomes the 8th Spanish man in history to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.
7-5, 6-2, 6-1 vs de Minaur.@AustralianOpen | #AO26 pic.twitter.com/9H5MRIiLmB
— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 27, 2026
De Minaur offered a glimpse of the blueprint required to trouble the game’s elite, notably Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, but the contest ultimately underlined the gap that still exists at the highest level. Alcaraz struck with authority from the baseline, dictating play with conviction as he surged into the semi-finals without dropping a set.
This fortnight, the 22-year-old Spaniard is aiming to become just the sixth man in the Open Era to complete the Career Grand Slam, joining Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Rod Laver.
Following his fourth-round win over Alexander Bublik, De Minaur spoke candidly about his determination to avoid becoming a “punching bag” for the top players and to improve his ability to move opponents out of position. His speed and relentless defence have driven his rise to a career-high No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings, but his comments reflect the evolution required to challenge a new generation that has claimed the past eight major titles.
For a set, De Minaur delivered on that ambition. The opening set of the quarter-final featured five breaks of serve, with the Australian clawing back from deficits of 0-3 and 3-5 by stepping inside the court and playing on his own terms. That resistance, however, proved temporary.
“It’s really difficult,” Alcaraz said when asked about playing De Minaur. “I started the match really well, hitting the ball really well. But Alex puts you in a rush all the time, so you want to hit the ball as hard as you can, which is impossible against him. So from 3-0 until 4-3, 4-4, I wanted everything in a rush, so I took a moment, took a break mentally. I was more patient until the end of the match.”
[NO 1 CLUB]Alcaraz shifted gears decisively, suffocating the contest with relentless ball striking as he raced towards a two-hour, 15-minute victory. The win extended his Lexus ATP Head2Head advantage over De Minaur to 6-0, with the Australian having claimed just two sets across their rivalry, which began in 2022.
After quarter-final exits at Melbourne Park in 2024 and 2025, Alcaraz has now improved to a 16-4 record at the tournament, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. Awaiting him in the last four is a rematch of his 2024 quarter-final against Zverev, which the German won in four sets.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic will continue their Australian Open campaigns on Wednesday when they take to court in quarter-final action.
The two-time defending champion Sinner will face eighth seed Ben Shelton in the next stage of his three-peat attempt at the hard-court major. The Italian, who has not lost in Melbourne since 2023, will open the evening session not before 7 p.m. AEDT / 3 a.m. EST. Sinner leads Shelton 8-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
View Wednesday’s schedule here
[NO 1 CLUB]Earlier in the day on Rod Laver Arena, record 10-time titlist Djokovic will meet Italian fifth seed Lorenzo Musetti, with the match not before 2:30 p.m. AEDT / 11:30 p.m. EST Wednesday. Djokovic will be aiming to earn his 103rd win at the major, surpassing Roger Federer as the outright leader for most victories in the tournament’s history.
If Sinner and Djokovic both advance, they will face off in the semi-finals on Friday.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]With each passing week, expectations continue to rise for 20-year-old Learner Tien. The American first announced himself on the Tour at last year’s Australian Open, where he became the youngest man to reach the fourth round of a major since Rafael Nadal in 2006.
Tien built on that breakthrough throughout 2025. The lefty claimed his maiden tour-level title in Metz, captured the Next Gen ATP Finals crown and surged into the Top 30 of the PIF ATP Rankings. Just three weeks into 2026, he once again showcased his rapid ascent in Melbourne. This fortnight, Tien went one step further at the Australian Open, becoming the youngest American to reach the quarter-finals of a major since 2002, before his run was halted by Alexander Zverev on Tuesday.
So, does heightened expectation bring added pressure?
“I don’t think about it too much,” Tien said when addressing that question in his post-match presser following his four-set loss to Zverev. “I don’t feel like a weight on my shoulder by any means. I’m very fortunate to be in the position that I’m in and I think I lead a pretty special life that a lot of people don’t get to live. I think it’s great just to go around and travel and play tennis. I just enjoy that as much as I can.”
Tien’s Melbourne campaign was marked by resilience and quality. The No. 25 seed rallied from two sets to one down, and from a break deficit in the fourth set, during his opening-round clash against Marcos Giron. He then moved confidently past Alexander Shevchenko and Nuno Borges to reach the second week.
The highlight came in the fourth round, where Tien delivered a statement performance against Daniil Medvedev, dismissing the three-time finalist for the loss of just seven games. The victory improved Tien’s record to 3-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series, having also beaten the former World No. 1 in Melbourne last year.
“I am super happy with how I played all week,” Tien said. “I think match by match I just got a little bit better. So super happy with how I was kind of progressing through the tournament. I was down a break in the fourth first round, so to be in the quarters, it’s amazing.
“The fact that I was able to make it to the quarters, that was a goal of mine coming into the year. So happy to check that box in the first Slam of the year.”
[NO 1 CLUB]Working closely with Tien in Australia was coach Michael Chang, who joined forces with the American last August. The 20-year-old is pleased with how his partnership is developing with the former Roland Garros champion.
“I think he’s always a very calming presence. Offers me a lot of stuff mid-match, especially stuff that maybe I’m not picking up on. A lot of it was encouragement, telling me to stick with him as best as I could,” Tien said on the advice Chang was giving during his match against Zverev.
“Obviously [Zverev] played a good match. He was playing pretty well from start to finish, so for portions of the match, I was just trying to stay with him and not let him kind of run away with things. So it’s more of that. He was just giving me little bits of encouragement here and there.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Third seed Alexander Zverev thanks his serve for pulling him past an “unbelievable” Learner Tien to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.
Alexander Zverev advanced to his third consecutive Australian Open semi-final on Tuesday by ending the career-best major run of Learner Tien. The German, who reached his third Grand Slam final last year in Melbourne, battled to a 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1, 7-6(3) victory to keep alive his bid for a maiden major title.
With the Rod Laver Arena roof closed due to extreme heat, the No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings controlled the match with powerful and consistent serving, hitting 24 aces, according to Infosys Stats. Zverev saved all three break points he faced with unreturned serves — including one that doubled as set point at 5-6 in the fourth set — and kept Tien at a distance by dominating rallies of 0-4 shots, winning 106 of those exchanges to his opponent’s 68.
“Learner from the baseline was playing unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve played anyone who plays that well from the baseline for a very long time,” Zverev said of the 20-year-old, drawing huge cheers from the crowd. “Without my [24] aces, I probably would not have won today. I’m obviously very happy with my serve, just generally happy to be back in the semis.”
Semi-final bound ✈️@AlexZverev defeats Tien to reach the final four in Melbourne for the fourth time.@AustralianOpen | #AO26 pic.twitter.com/3gBr9yFKI6
— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 27, 2026
After an emphatic upset of Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round, the 25th-seeded Tien put a scare into Zverev when he rattled off four straight points to win the second-set tie-break from 3/5 down. But more stellar serving helped the German regroup to roll through the third.
The patient Tien had more success in longer rallies, doing his damage with precision rather than power and effectively using width to open the court. But the free points kept coming on Zverev’s serve, leaving the German free to hit out as he repeatedly dragged his opponent into rallies on return.
After failing to close out the second-set tie-break, Zverev sealed the victory after building a 6/0 lead in the fourth-set tie-break — though his first double fault of the match at 6/0 injected one last bit of drama.
Zverev finished the 2025 season at No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings but still called it an “incredibly unsatisfying” year after winning just one title (Munich). The 28-year-old is living up to his sky-high standards this fortnight, particularly in his past two wins against an in-form Francisco Cerundolo and Tien — both of whom earned at least one Lexus ATP Head2Head win against Zverev last year.
Through to his 10th Grand Slam semi-final and his first since last year in Melbourne, Zverev awaits the winner of the Tuesday evening showdown between World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and Aussie hope Alex de Minaur.
Tien, who bettered his breakout fourth-round run from one year ago at the Australian Open, is up to No. 24 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, setting himself up to debut inside the Top 25.
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