Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari have confirmed predictions that they will be late … to leave Melbourne. Both of our tennis players reached the 3rd round of the Australian Open, and Rafa Nadal will not defend his title after elimination.

Stefanos Tsitsipas had one of his most…calm matches at the Grand Slam level. He beat Rinki Hijikata 6-3, 6-0, 6-2 in one hour and 32 minutes. In the third round, he will face Talon Grekspur. The 26-year-old Dutchman is ranked 61st in the world and reaches the 1/8 finals of a major tournament for the first time. He made a surprise by beating his compatriot Van de Zandsulp 3-0. Tsitsipas and Grekspur will meet for the first time.

The top Greek tennis player mentioned after the match the help he got from having Mark Philippousis on his team: “Filippousis helped me with the serve and volley. I think that with him I am moving in the right direction,” he stressed, emphasizing once again that he feels “at home in Australia” and does not rule out buying a house there.

Stefanos defeated Hijikata 6-3, 6-0, 6-2 and Maria defeated Snyder 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.

18-year-old Diana Snyder showed that she reached the 2nd round not by chance. She led Maria Sakkari 6-3 and the Greek champion had to improve her game and play more aggressively to win the next two sets 7-5, 6-3. “It was a difficult game. In the first set I was very defensive. Thanks to my experience, I managed to turn the tide of the match,” he explained after the end of the match. In the 3rd round, she will face Lin Zhu. The 28-year-old Chinese defeated Swiss Gilles Belen Teichmann (33rd racket of the world) 6-2, 6-2.

Due to a thigh injury on his left leg, Rafa Nadal was eliminated from the Australian Open. Despite severe discomfort, the winner of last year’s tournament remained on the court and met with Mackenzie McDonald, whom she eventually lost 4-6, 4-6, 5-7. His match was also attended by his wife Franziska, who burst into tears when the Spaniard was injured. “As the defending champion, I did not want to leave the sport. I wanted to finish the race. This is a sport: try to the end, ”the experienced tennis player emphasized.

Daria Kasatkina and Bianca Andreescu dropped out of the tournament, while Daniil Medvedev and Corey Goff continued.