Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek Progress at the Australian Open
Published January 18, 2026 at 9:50 PM
The Australian Open is underway, and top contenders Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek have both secured victories in their opening matches. Gauff, the world No. 3, displayed a dominant performance against Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova (No. 93), winning 6-2, 6-3. The American star is aiming high this tournament.
“I tried not to put any pressure on myself. I’m here to win the tournament. I’ll only be happy if I win the title,” Gauff commented after her match.
Gauff, who reached the semi-finals last year in Melbourne – her best result at the tournament – will face left-handed Serbian Olga Danilovic (No. 69) in the second round. She prepared specifically for this challenge.
“I practiced against a lefty, Alexandra Eala, because there aren’t many lefties on the tour. It will be a tough match, but I’m looking forward to it,” Gauff stated. The 2023 US Open and 2025 Roland Garros champion served for the match at 5-2 but couldn’t close it out immediately. She ultimately secured the win by breaking Rakhimova’s serve for the sixth time.
“I would have preferred to finish on my serve a game earlier, but there are a lot of chances to break here,” Gauff pointed out.
Swiatek Battles to Victory
Iga Swiatek, the world No. 2, knows she has work to do if she hopes to complete her career Grand Slam at the Australian Open. She didn’t have an easy path to victory in her 7-6 (5), 6-3 win against China’s Yuan Yue (No. 130) in the first round.
Having already won Wimbledon last year, adding to her collection of four French Open titles and a US Open trophy from 2022, Swiatek is only missing the Australian Open to achieve a career Grand Slam. She has reached the semi-finals twice at Melbourne Park.
Yuan played aggressively, hitting winners and taking an early 5-3 lead. Swiatek realized she needed to adjust her game plan. “I was a little rusty at the start,” the Polish player admitted. “I was lacking consistency, but I generally know I have things to polish. I will focus on that.”
Trailing 5-3 in the first set, she won her next service game to love and forced Yuan to serve for the set. Swiatek then broke serve to level the score and ultimately won the tie-break. “I was a little nervous at the beginning. I had to loosen my legs. Run for the balls. Be brave in my decisions,” she shared about her change in approach.
“It wasn’t perfect, but that’s why I’m satisfied,” Swiatek added, noting she has only lost once in the first round of a major tournament. “It’s easy to win matches when everything is going well. That wasn’t the case today, but I managed to pull it off anyway.”
Other Notable Results
Former champion Sofia Kenin’s struggles at the Australian Open continued with a 6-3, 6-2 defeat to fellow American Peyton Stearns. Kenin, the 27th seed, won the tournament in 2020 but has since lost in the first round for the fifth consecutive time. Stearns fired 15 aces with only one double fault, securing her place in the second round in 1 hour and 14 minutes. She will face Croatia’s Petra Marcinko next.
Fourth seed Amanda Anisimova also advanced with a straight-set victory over Simona Waltert in just 60 minutes. Jessica Pegula was also successful, triumphing in two sets (6-2, 6-1) against Anastasia Zakharova. However, 15th seed Emma Navarro was upset in three sets by Magda Linette.
TSN – Australian Open provides comprehensive coverage of the tournament.
