‘Very crazy’: TN becomes youngest player after Nadal to reach Australian Open last 16 | tennis news
Teenage qualifier Lerner Tien said it was “pretty crazy” after becoming the youngest man to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open since Rafael Nadal in 2005 when he defeated Frenchman Corentin Moutet on Saturday.
The 19-year-old American won 7-6 (12/10), 6-3, 6-3 in Melbourne, while Moutet fell after holding his leg before taking the lead in the third set.
The win extended Tien’s remarkable tournament run after defeating last year’s runner-up and fifth seed Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller in the second round. “To be honest, it feels pretty crazy to be in week two. Going through the quiz (qualifying),” he said.
No American man his age has gone that far in Melbourne since Pete Sampras in 1990, with Tien rewarded with a clash against Italian Lorenzo Sonego, who defeated Hungary’s Fabian Marozsson in four sets.
“It exceeded my expectations for what I was expecting this week,” Tien said. “You go into every game believing you can win, but to win the second week is amazing.”
Tien is one of a trio of teenagers who swept the Australian Open with wins over top-10 players along with Brazil’s Joao Fonseca and Jakub Mencic, who have both since bowed out.
In a battle of left-handers, Tien took a 3-1 lead in the first set thanks to an unforced baseline error from Moutet. But the French equalized at 3-3.
Another exchange of breaks sent it into a dramatic tiebreak, which went up and down before TN won 12/10, ending the 72-minute set.
Moutet fell to the ground clutching his left foot after serving for 15-0 in the opening game of the third set, before the American broke twice in set two to take the match.
He got back up and tried to move forward boldly, but with his movements limited he was clearly in pain and Tien took advantage of this to book his place in the last 16 of a Grand Slam for the first time.
“I didn’t really see what was happening… I just saw him on the ground,” Tien said.
“To be honest, I wasn’t sure what was going on with him because there were some points where it seemed like he wasn’t able to move or really use his legs that much.
“The other point he was driving and scraping.”
Papi flies into the last 16
Defending champion Jannik Sinner was in very bad mood as he defeated American Marcos Giron in straight sets to reach the last 16.
The Italian world number one lost a set for the first time in 14 matches in his second-round match against Australian wildcard Tristan Sculcate. There were no such wobbles against unseeded Giron on Rod Laver Arena as he fired 35 winners and eight aces for an emphatic 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win in 2 hours and 1 minute.
He then awaits either Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic or Danish 13th seed Holger Rune, who will take on the player with a 17-match winning streak. This record dates back to his defeat against Carlos Alcaraz in Beijing in October.
“I am very happy to reach the next round,” said Sinner, who also won the US Open and ATP Finals among his eight titles last year. “Every match has its own difficulties. Today I felt like he was very strong from the back of the court, he served well.
“I still have room to improve, but every win is great. “Trying to stay in there mentally, which I think is the most important aspect for us tennis players,” he said.
“But of course, I have to improve if I want to advance in this tournament.”
The 23-year-old, who is defending a Grand Slam title for the first time after a five-set win against Daniil Medvedev in last year’s final, immediately asserted himself against Giron. He broke her in his first service game and this proved enough to win the set, despite committing 11 unforced errors, two more than Giron.
The top seed bide his time in set two before making his move in the fifth game, converting two break points and taking a 3-2 lead when Giron hit a forehand wide. The American, who was trying to reach the last 16 at a Grand Slam for the first time, had no answers as Sinner dominated the rallies.
A Sinner backhand winner earned him another break to take a 2-0 lead in the third set and it looked like it would be all over. But the courageous Giron, ranked 46, still had some fight left in him and he broke for the first time in the match to level the score at 2-2.
This infuriated the Italian, who stormed straight back and made no mistakes winning the next four games on his way to victory.
