Belinda Bencic advanced to the Round of 16 at the Australian Open after former No.1 Naomi Osaka retired from their third-round encounter due to injury after losing the first set 7-6(3). Playing in her first Grand Slam since giving birth to her daughter Bella, Bencic is into her first Round of 16 at a major since the 2023 US Open.
Before walking off the court, Bencic signed the camera "Get well soon, Mama."
Bencic, 27, will face either World No.3 Coco Gauff or Leylah Fernandez in the fourth round. The 2016 Olympic champion is bidding to make her first Grand Slam quarterfinal since the 2021 US Open.
Facing each other for the first time since the 2022 Miami Open, Osaka built a 5-3 lead in the opening set when she noticeably began to alter her service motion to compensate for her discomfort. Bencic broke serve and held before Osaka took a medical timeout to assess the injury. Bencic played a disciplined tiebreak to take it 7-3 after 57 minutes.
Osaka slowly walked to her chair before deciding to retire. Osaka began her 2025 season by making the final at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand. There, Osaka won the first set over Clara Tauson before abruptly retiring due to an abdominal injury. Osaka has been forced to retire from her last three tournaments, having finished her 2024 season at the China Open with a back injury against Coco Gauff.
Iga Swiatek eased into the third round at the Australian Open after defeating Slovakia's Rebecca Sramkova 6-0, 6-2 in the second round.
Swiatek has now won her last 40 matches in the first two rounds at a Grand Slam. Her opening set over Sramkova is her 24th 6-0 set at a Grand Slam since the start of 2020. Aryna Sabalenka is the next best over that span with nine.
Three questions after another clinical march from the World No.2:
How does Swiatek look through two rounds?
After coming through a physically grueling week at the United Cup, where she led Poland back to the finals with great wins over Karolina Muchova, Katie Boulter, and Elena Rybakina, Swiatek has enjoyed a smooth ride so far at Melbourne Park.
She started her week with a 6-3, 6-4 win over doubles No.1 Katerina Siniakova. On Thursday, she needed just an hour to power past Sramkova. In relatively mild and breezy conditions, Swiatek struck 16 winners to 14 unforced errors and did not face a break point. She dominated off the ground, winning 20 of the 26 rallies that lasted five shots or more.
So far, Swiatek has been keeping an efficient stat sheet. She has hit more winners than unforced errors, 33 to 29, and she's winning 81 percent of her first-serve points. That latter stat puts her second among all remaining players, just behind Elena Rybakina and tied with Clara Tauson.
Who does Swiatek get next?
Swiatek will take on 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu in the third round. Raducanu came through a tough second-round draw against Amanda Anisimova, coming from a breakdown in both sets to seal a 6-3, 7-5 win and make the third round at Melbourne Park for the first time.
Anisimova will rue her chances in her first meeting against her friend. The American was two points from a 4-1 lead in the first set before losing five consecutive games. She burst out to a 3-0 lead in the second set but, again, could not protect her advantage.
Raducanu needed a medical timeout in the second set but hopes the discomfort she felt is the natural consequence of playing her first string of matches since the end of last season.
"I think it's almost to be expected when you haven't played a match in so long," Raducanu said, "and then to have two really physical ones, yeah, I think small niggles are going to come up here and there. I'm just hoping that it is that. I was able to push past some pain today, but yeah, I'm going to just try and recover as best as possible over the next day."
Swiatek is undefeated against No.61 Raducanu, winning all three meetings without losing a set. Their last clash came on the clay at Stuttgart last year. Swiatek won 7-6(2), 6-3 in the quarterfinals.
With her win over No.49 Sramkova, Swiatek has now won her last 16 matches against opponents ranked outside the Top 20. While the numbers are stacked in Swiatek's favor, the third round was her bugbear last year. She fell in the third round at two of the four Grand Slams, including at Melbourne Park, where she bowed out to big-hitting Linda Noskova. She also lost in the third round at Wimbledon to Yulia Putintseva.
Swiatek and Raducanu are junior contemporaries who won their first Grand Slams as teenagers. While Swiatek's ascension continued, injuries have hampered Raducanu's follow-up seasons.
"Everybody's story is different, and everybody struggles with different stuff, but it doesn't matter," Swiatek said. "When we're going to be out there on the court, whoever is going to play better will win, and that's it. I'll just focus on tennis.
"For sure we have different stories, but before the match, I'm not going to really think about that. I'll just prepare based on how she plays now and that's it."
Raducanu agreed. The 22-year-old has never been tempted to compare her last few years to Swiatek's.
"Of course I've seen her win a lot, but I also know that we've had very different paths," Raducanu said. "I know that she was playing since a very young age, and my hours in comparison were probably a bit comical when I was 17, 18 playing six hours a week (laughing). I don't think it was the same trajectory."
It’s fair to say Danielle Collins won’t have the crowd on her side from this point on however long her run in this year’s Australian Open lasts.
The American produced a bizarre display during and particularly after her 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-2 victory over local hope Destanee Aiava in the second round on Thursday night.
The 31-year-old had a variety of issues during the 2 hour, 25 minute contest, berating a courtside camera operator and later telling the crowd to “shut up” after a missed serve as the vocal home crowd got firmly under her skin.
The 10th seed then ensured she copped the full hatred of the majority of the crowd after sealing the match point.
Blowing kisses, winking, and repeatedly exclaiming “how about that” towards the crowd, Collins even kissed her hand and touched her butt in the direction of the stands after shaking the umpire’s hands.
“She’s giving it to the crowd, which won’t be taken too well in these parts,” commentator Dave Basheer said on Stan Sports.
“The brave run of Destanee Aiava comes to an end at the hands of the 2022 finalist here at Melbourne Park, Danielle Collins.”
Collins then took the microphone from the on-court interviewer as boos rained down on her.
“Yeah, I mean, Destanee,” she began, before changing tack. “You know I was thinking during the match, I was like ‘hmm, if I’m out here I may as well just take that big, fat pay cheque’.
“Coco (Vandeweghe) and I just love a five-star vacation, so part of that cheque is going to go towards that, so thank you guys.”
Vandeweghe, a former tennis player herself, was in Collins’ team box for the match.
Not surprisingly, there was a strong reaction to Collins’ display on social media.
Tennis podcaster Myles David wrote on X: “Danielle Collins is an absolute MESS” along with a series of cry laughing emojis.
An account called @roheenaaah tweeted: “Why is Danielle Collins out here doing all that??? My entire body is tense with second hand embarrassment.”
Sports journalist Christian Montegan offered: “Danielle Collins gets booed after riling up the Aussie crowd. Oh my god.”
Sports fan Rob Scarcella called Collins “literally the female version of Nick Kyrgios.......What an absolute FLOG of a human being.”
An account titled Spicy Espresso wrote: “LMFAOOO Danielle Collins maybe win a slam before you act like a f**kwit after beating an Aussie qualifier who took a set off you. That was an embarrassing reaction.”
Nils Muller also pondered: “Is there someone who is more ‘Karen’ in the world of sports than her?”
She received a little support online, but not much, with Pavvy G declaring: “This is just brilliant Danielle! The “morally superior” Tennis fans and media are going to be absolutely seething with this!”
Sporty Fella added: “I have no issue with Danielle Collins giving it back to that heckling crowd lol. They were cheering all her unforced errors and double faults. They were even cheering 1st serve faults in between and messing up her rhythm because the umpire had to stop them. She is one of one.”
Commentator Louise Pleming tried to offer some support for Collins, stating: “I think just the frustration of knowing she didn’t have a lot of support out here … she felt the world was against her.
“And of course, she has not played a lot of matches since the US Open.”
Collins was knocked out in the first round of last year’s tournament at Flushing Meadow and had played just two matches since, first-round defeats in Mexico and Adelaide, before this week’s run to the third round.
The Floridian actually announced at the start of the 2024 season that it would be her last on the WTA Tour, before reversing her retirement call last October.
She has spoken about her battles with endometriosis and her desire to start a family.
Collins ultimately enjoyed a hugely successful season, winning tournaments in Miami and Charleston and reaching the round of 16 at Wimbledon.
Several players, along with plenty of umpires, have had issues with some of the boisterous Australian crowds during this year’s tournament at Melbourne Park.
Few players have reacted like Collins, however, who initially berated a cameraman early in the match, apparently for filming her too low down in between games.
The situation then reached boiling point for Collins during her service game to start the second set, having won the opening set 7-4 in a tie-break.
After a man yelled out an extended “Destanee” right before Collins’ first serve down 15-30, there was then only a low muttering after she put the serve into the net.
It was a tame reaction by this year’s standards, but she didn’t take kindly to the noise, immediately shouting “Shut up”, putting her left hand in the air and shaking her head.
The chair umpire then intervened, saying: “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you. Please show some respect to both players. Thank you.”
Aiava then pulled off a forehand volley winner to earn a 15-40 lead and went on to break serve.
“And after a tense situation where Collins was not happy about the volume in the stadium on her service action, that’s an important point for Destanee to convert,” Basheer said.
Pleming added: “Yeah I think that’s fair as well from Danielle. Someone heckling there, it’s just not acceptable.”
Collins, who lost the 2022 Australian Open final to Ash Barty, then fought back to comfortably win the final set and progress to a match against compatriot Madison Keys.
Collins’ conduct after the match point ensures there is likely to be a hot crowd in attendance for that match.
“She’s never afraid of speaking her mind and obviously just feeling a little unloved in this match,” Pleming said.
“There’s no question about it because that’s the response.
“It’s tough for tennis players, you’re in the arena, you’re out there on your own and everyone responds a little bit differently.
“It was a gallant effort tonight Danielle Collins, she’s been through a lot. Never an easy one to fight the crowd.”
Two-time Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka has been forced to withdraw from the tournament during her third-round clash with fellow super-mum Belinda Bencic.
A persistent abdominal injury started troubling Osaka during the first set of her match on Friday, with the 27-year-old calling for medical attention when up 6-5.
She played on until the end of the first set tiebreaker, which Bencic won, before calling it quits.
Osaka also retired from the Auckland Open last week when she was a set up against Clara Tauson in what was her first WTA final in almost three years.
It was a disappointing end after a rollercoaster first set between the four-time major winner and Bencic that included four breaks of serve.
“At this moment, I just feel for Naomi,” Bencic said after consoling Osaka with a hug when she pulled the pin.
“I saw her struggling a bit at the end, and it’s obviously not the way you want this match to end.”
It has been a superb comeback from Bencic, who reached the fourth round in her first major appearance after giving birth last April.
The 27-year-old Swiss player is currently ranked 294, but that will skyrocket after this tournament.
Bencic will play the winner of the match between third seed Coco Gauff and Canada’s Leylah Fernandez in the round of 16.
“A sad ending to a great contest,” the official account of the Australian Open posted on social media.
“Naomi Osaka is forced to retire against Bencic.
“We wish you a speedy recovery, and we can’t wait to see you back on the court soon, Naomi.”