Jack Draper will battle Carlos Alcaraz for a place in the Australian Open quarter-finals after the British number one lost his third consecutive match from 2-1 down The match ended with an epic five-set victory over local favorite Aleksandar Vukic.

In a thrilling match that lasted just under four hours, Draper prevailed 6-4 2-6 5-7 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 shortly before 1am local time in Melbourne. (10-8) won and advanced to the fourth round of the tournament for the first time.

Draper started the match well, winning four consecutive games to take the first set and fighting back after being broken.

But Australia’s unseeded Vukic was far from succumbing to the enthusiastic home support, and the 28-year-old, playing in his first Grand Slam third round match, easily won the second set and quickly equalized for the fifth consecutive game of his own. Contest.

In the tight third game of the 11th game, Draper broke his racket shortly after a double fault gave his opponent a crucial break, while Vukic, on the other hand, held on Calm down and ended the game with an ace.

Then in a chaotic fourth set, Draper gave up three break points on Vukic’s serve and then had to fend off five break points himself in the next two service games.

Neither player was able to take advantage, and Draper missed two set points as Vukic forced a tiebreak, but the Briton eventually cashed in a tight and tense break.

The decider also went far despite an early break and four second chances for Draper. Vukic fought back again, breaking the Englishman’s serve and leveling the score.

The same situation happened in the tie-break of the final set. Draper broke serve early and the 3-0 advantage was quickly erased. But in the end, the No. 15 seed won an unforgettable game with a strong serve on the second match point.

Draper reached the semi-finals at last year’s U.S. Open and is coming off the deepest run of his career in a Grand Slam tournament. He will face third seed and four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz in the round of 16.

“I thought it was over, and then he came back from the dead,” Draper said after his victory over Vekic. “It was just a great fight, both fighters competing and that’s what sport is about.

“I’m not feeling great physically, but luckily I have good fitness. Mentally, I compete really hard and I love the atmosphere here… it gives me a lot of I was surprised at the energy I had to keep going.”

Draper trails Alcaraz 2-1 in the pair’s head-to-head record, but won 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 in their most recent meeting at Queen’s Club last year.

“Carlos is a special talent, an incredible player and has a great friendship with me,” Draper said of his next opponent. “It’s going to be an unbelievable game; hopefully my body picks up and I can give it my all and it’s going to be a great game.”

British player Fearnley loses to second seed Zverev

Another British hopeful, Jacob Fearnley, had a strong debut at the Australian Open but lost in straight sets to second seed Alexander Zverev in the third round. Zverev).

The 23-year-old Scot continues to feel comfortable at the top of the professional game and didn’t look out of place against one of the tournament favorites at Margaret Court Arena.

But he was unable to maintain sustained pressure on Zverev, who won 6-3 6-4 6-4 in 2 hours and 2 minutes.

Fearnley had slightly more winners and his forehand caused constant problems for Zverev, but also made 34 unforced errors to the German’s 15.

Still, it was a fantastic week for Fearnley, who defeated Nick Kyrgios and the Australian crowd in the first round before defeating Arthur Kazoks in the second round.

“I thought I played some good tennis, some good moments, some down moments,” Fearnley said. “I don’t think there’s a lot in it. Just a few points here or there.

“I think that’s what those top players did really well. They stayed calm and their base level stayed the same throughout the match. My level was quite up and down and I think that’s why I lost the match.

Less than eight months into his professional tennis career, Fearnley will break into the top 80 in the world at the end of the tournament and will certainly be ranked higher, with no ranking points to defend his title until June.

The 23-year-old faced Novak Djokovic on his Grand Slam debut at Wimbledon last year and performed brilliantly, taking the Serb a set and nearly forcing the match into a decider.

Fearnley added: “It’s a big confidence boost knowing I can compete against some of the best players in the world, which is really cool.”

“He (Zverev) is No. 2 in the world and he’s probably playing the best tennis in the world right now. So to get that experience, I learned a lot about my game, about what I needed to do Better knowledge.”

After the win, Zverev also paid tribute to his opponent, saying: “I think he’s an unbelievable player, he’s been through all the stages. I have a lot of respect for him and what he’s done for the sport. The hard work he puts in, he will continue to work hard and I think will get better in the next few years. “

Djokovic easily defeats Machak to advance to fourth round

Novak Djokovic entered the fourth round with his most confident performance of the tournament so far, defeating 26th seed Tomas Machak 6-1 6-4 6-4.

The record 24-time Grand Slam winner – 10 in Melbourne – was broken just once and saved five of his 15 chances on Machac’s serve.

This was Djokovic’s first straight-sets victory at this year’s Australian Open. He had been forced into the semi-finals by the 19-year-old Nish Basavareddy in the first round, and was defeated by the 21-year-old Nishi Basavareddy in the second round. Jaime Faria advances to the semi-finals – both first-time Grand Slam players. .

A slight concern for Djokovic’s camp arose after the first game of the second set at Rod Laver Arena, where Andy Murray, now Djokovic’s coach, Djokovic, 37, looked uncomfortable and grabbed the right side of the match. His ribs.

Then, in the ensuing transition, he took the unusual step of sitting on the sideline bench instead of walking around the net to the opposite baseline.

In the next game, Djokovic missed a lob to bring the score to 15-40, then leaned forward and put his hands on his knees. Subsequently, Djokovic missed a difficult volley, and Machac seized the first break opportunity of the set to lead 2-0.

But Djokovic fought back with a right, called the doctor, and then gushed over the next three games, culminating in an easy victory.

“I was trying to catch my breath,” Djokovic said in an on-court interview, laughing off the incident. “I’m not 19 anymore.”

The Serbian will face another Czech, 24th seed Jiri Lehecka, in the round of 16.

Alcaraz surpasses Borges to advance to final

Alcaraz lost the first set of the tournament, but the third seed stayed strong in the third round, defeating him 6-2 6-4 6-7 (7-7) in less than three hours. 3) Defeated Portugal’s Nuno Borges 6-2.

“I miss Rod Laver (Arena). I’m really, really happy to be playing here again,” Alcaraz said after the game.

“I try to show my best tennis here. For me, it’s a pleasure every time I step on this court. The last time I played here I lost (in the quarter-finals in 2024 to Alexander Zverev), so I really want to play here and get another win here on Rod Laver.”

A break in the first set set the tone against world number 33 Borges, with Alcaraz dominating on serve from the start, dropping just six points in each of the first two sets.

Alcaraz is targeting a career Grand Slam at the Australian Open, having already won Wimbledon twice (2023, 2024) as well as the 2022 US Open and last year’s French Open Tournament champion.

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