Australian Open Day Six Preview: American Men and Women Gunning for Spots in Round of 16
While we here on the East Coast will be getting out our jackets and shovels ahead of Winter Storm Jonas making its landing, the tennis world will have its eyes on the other side of the world on the Australian summer, as the third round of the men’s and women’s singles comes to a close in Melbourne.
Below are some of the men’s matchups to watch on Day Six:
(8) David Ferrer (Spain) vs. (31) Steve Johnson (United States)
David Ferrer knocked out the home favorite Lleyton Hewitt in his last round in a matchup between guys with similar styles of play. That’ll change for the Spaniard tonight when he takes on American Steve Johnson. The 31st seed who played his college tennis at the University of Southern California, and is a big-hitter with an outstanding serve. He hit 10 aces in his last match, and 17 in his opening round win, both straight set victories. This should be a good matchup between the big hitting of Johnson and the fantastic return game of Ferrer.
(10) John Isner (United States) vs. (18) Feliciano Lopez (Spain)
Johnson’s compatriot, John Isner, may have the best serve on the tour, and he takes on Spanish lefty Feliciano Lopez. A win in this round would mark the third time (2012 and 2015) Lopez has reached the fourth round in Melbourne, and the second for Isner (2010). Each player has won three matches in the head-to-head series between the two, making this one of the most intriguing matchups of the third round.
(13) Milos Raonic (Canada) vs. (21) Viktor Troicki (Serbia)
Both players enter this match with six-match winning streaks so something will have to give in this one. Despite a coaching change, Raonic has looked excellent early on in 2016, while the 29-year old Troicki continues to get better and better since returning from his doping suspension a little over a year ago. Raonic leads the head-to-head series 2-1, but Troicki won the most recent contest between these two, a straight-set win in Beijing.
Rest of Day 6 Men’s Matches
â–º(2) Andy Murray (Great Britain) vs. (32) Joao Sousa (Portugal)
â–º(4) Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland) vs. Lukas Rosol (Czech Republic)
â–º(16) Bernard Tomic (Australia) vs. John Millman (Australia)
â–º(23) Gael Monfils (France) vs. Stephane Robert (France)
â–ºDudi Sela (Israel) vs. Andrey Kuznetsov (Russia)
Below are some of the women’s matchups to watch on Day Six:
(15) Madison Keys (United States) vs. (20) Ana Ivanovic (Serbia)
This is a third-round matchup between a former world number one in Ivanovic and a player with the potential to be a world number one in Madison Keys. The American reached the semifinals here a year ago, and her game and style of play suit the fast courts in Melbourne. Ivanovic has looked good through her first two matches here following a disappointing first round loss a year ago. Ivanovic has won the only previous meeting between the two, two years ago in Madrid.
(14) Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) vs. Naomi Osaka (Japan)
No one has looked better thus far in Melbourne than the two-time champion from Belarus. Azarenka has barely broke a sweat through her first two matches, and she takes on the darling of the tournament, Japanese teenager Naomi Osaka. She upset 18th seed Elina Svitolina in her last match, but would need to pull off a tremendous upset to take down Azarenka, who many believe is a serious threat to hoist the trophy at the end.
(9) Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) vs. (21) Ekaterina Makarova (Russia)
Karolina Pliskova has flown somewhat under the radar through the first two rounds of the Australian Open, but the ninth-seeded Czech can play with anyone. She has fired 27 aces through her first two matches, and takes on Ekaterina Makarova, who has lost just nine games so far in Melbourne. Makarova has won the only two previous meetings, including a straight sets win at this exact stage of the Australian Open a year ago.
Rest of Day 6 Women’s Matches
â–º(3) Garbine Muguruza (Spain) vs. Barbora Strycova (Czech Republic)
â–º(7) Angelique Kerber (Germany) vs. Madison Brengle (United States)
â–ºJohanna Konta (Great Britain) vs. Denisa Allertova (Czech Republic)
â–ºVarvara Lepchenko (United States) vs. Shuai Zhang (China)
â–ºLaura Siegemund (Germany) vs. Annika Beck (Germany)
