MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A quick look at the Australian Open:
LOOKAHEAD TO SATURDAY
There will be no spectators allowed on site for Day 6 of the Australian Open as a lockdown imposed by the Victoria state government begins because of new COVID-19 cases in the area. Rafael Nadal continues his attempt for a men’s-record 21st Grand Slam singles title when he takes on Cameron Norrie, while three American women will attempt to join Serena Williams in the fourth round. Shelby Rogers will play No. 21 Anett Kontaveit, No. 22 Jennifer Brady takes on qualifier Kaja Juvan and Jessica Pegula faces Kristina Mladenovic. Kaia Kanepi, who beat defending champion Sofia Kenin in the second round, plays Donna Vekic, while top-ranked Ash Barty plays Ekaterina Alexandrova. Men’s matches include Australia’s Alex De Minaur against the volatile Fabio Fognini, who got into a heated exchange with fellow Italian Salvatore Caruso after a five-set win on Thursday and had to be separated by a tournament official. No. 4 Daniil Medvedev, No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas and No. 7 Andrey Rublev all are also in action Saturday.
SATURDAY’S FORECAST
Mostly sunny, high of 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit)
FRIDAY’S WEATHER
Mostly sunny, high of 25 Celsius (77 Fahrenheit).
FRIDAY’S KEY RESULTS
Women’s Third Round: No. 2 Simona Halep beat No. 32 Veronika Kudermetova 6-1, 6-3; No. 3 Naomi Osaka beat No. 27 Ons Jabeur 6-3, 6-2; No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka beat Ann Li 6-3, 6-1; No. 10 Serena Williams beat Anastasia Potapova 7-6 (5), 6-2; No. 14 Garbiñe Muguruza beat Zarina Diyas 6-1, 6-1; No. 15 Iga Swiatek beat Fiona Ferro 6-4, 6-3. No. 19 Marketa Vondrousova beat Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 6-4.
Men’s Third Round: No. 1 Novak Djokovic beat No. 27 Taylor Fritz 7-6 (1), 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2; No. 3 Dominic Thiem beat Nick Kyrgios 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; No. 6 Alexander Zverev beat No. 32 Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-3, 6-1; Aslan Karatsev beat No. 8 Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-3, 6-3; No. 14 Milos Raonic beat Marton Fucsovics 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2, 6-2; No. 18 Grigor Dimitrov beat No. 15 Pablo Carreno 6-0, 1-0 retired; No. 20 Felix Auger-Aliassime beat No. 11 Denis Shapovalov 7-5, 7-5, 6-3.
STAT OF THE DAY
5 — Double-faults in one game by Potapova while serving for the first set against Williams.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It’s not ideal. It’s been really fun to have the crowd back, especially here.” — Williams on spectators being banned at the Australian Open for at least the next five days.
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