Staff Reporter.
Jannik Sinner revved up his bid for a first Grand Slam title with a straight-sets cruise into the Australian Open third round on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Italian fourth seed was on a different level from Dutch qualifier Jesper de Jong, racing through the match on Margaret Court Arena 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 in just 1 hour 43 minutes.
“He’s a very good player, a young player and I’m sure he will play many more Grand Slam main draw matches,” said Sinner of De Jong, gracious in victory.
He will next face either Argentine 26th seed Sebastian Baez or Colombia’s unseeded Daniel Elahi Galan.
Sinner enjoyed a breakthrough 2023, winning his first Masters title, in Toronto, and reaching the championship match against Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals.
It has sparked expectations that it is only a matter of time before he wins a major.
In other men’s results, Alex De Minaur, the 10th-seeded Australian, defeated Matteo Arnaldi 6-3, 6-0, 6-3.
The 24-year-old from Sydney benefited from a retirement in the first round, and Australia’s recent Davis Cup final loss to Italy was on his mind during his win Wednesday.
“I thought I just had to be solid here, just use the crowd,” De Minaur said. “It’s no secret that it was heartbreaking to lose the Davis Cup final at the end of last year … today was a little bit of revenge for Australia.”
Defending champion Novak Djokovic headlines the night matches later Wednesday, three days after wrapping up the first-ever first Sunday at Melbourne Park.