Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka delivered commanding displays to reach the Australian Open third round. Both top seeds looked ruthless and efficient as they firmly controlled on day four in Melbourne.
French Open champion Gauff required just 77 minutes to dismiss Serbia’s Olga Danilovic 6-2 6-2. Meanwhile, world number one Sabalenka was even quicker, overpowering China’s Bai Zhuoxuan 6-3 6-1 in 72 minutes.
All top 10 women’s seeds remain in the draw. That shows the tournament’s competitive balance. Italian seventh seed Jasmine Paolini and Russian eighth seed Mirra Andreeva were scheduled later Wednesday.
Danilovic, who stunned Venus Williams earlier, found Gauff relentless on Margaret Court Arena. The American raced into a five-game lead before steadying herself to close the opening set.
She tightened her grip in the second set, breaking early and never easing her intensity. Gauff finished with 14 winners, 17 unforced errors, and only one double fault.
“Near perfect,” was how Gauff summarised her performance afterwards. She now faces fellow American Hailey Baptiste in round three.
Sabalenka’s ruthless run keeps history in sight
Sabalenka, unbeaten in 2026, quickly asserted dominance against an opponent ranked far below her. She won five straight games early, though brief resistance delayed the opening set’s conclusion.
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With Bai’s challenge ended, Sabalenka surged clear and never looked back. She has now won 45 of her last 50 sets at the Australian Open.
“That sounds cra*y and surreal, to be honest,” Sabalenka said. “I just never thought that people will compare me to these names.”
She added, “It motivates me to keep doing my thing. It just means for me that I’m on the right way.” Next up is Anastasia Potapova, following her win over Emma Raducanu.
Tags: Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, 2026 Australian Open, #AO, #AussieOpen, #AusOpen, #AustralianOpen, Olga Danilovic, Bai Zhuoxuan, Hailey Baptiste.
