Australian Open Day 6 order of play, schedule and how to watch Novak Djokovic, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff
Defending singles champions Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka face their first seeded opponents on day six of the Australian Open – while Coco Gauff has another all-American test in the third round.
Having been pushed to four sets by both Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin, Djokovic takes on Argentine 30th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry for a place in the last 16.
Sabalenka has progressed through the tournament for the loss of just six games so far, and she next faces Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko – the 28th seed.
For the second match in a row, US Open champion Gauff faces a compatriot when she plays Alycia Parks, who beat Leylah Fernandez in her previous match.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner and Andrey Rublev also play, while 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva will be hoping to continue her run after knocking out sixth seed Ons Jabeur.
No British players are in singles action on day six.
How to watch and stream the 2024 Australian Open
Eurosport is home to round-the-clock coverage from Melbourne, while you can stream all the action on discovery+ across a range of devices.
Top men’s match – Novak Djokovic v Tomas Martin Etcheverry
Special mention for Sebastian Korda v Andrey Rublev, but as Novak Djokovic has not had it all his own way so far in Melbourne, his meeting with Argentina’s 30th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry takes top billing.
Chasing an outright record 25th Grand Slam singles title, the world No. 1 has already spent more than seven hours on court in his first two matches against Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin.
There are lingering concerns about Djokovic’s troublesome wrist issue while Etcheverry has already seen off veterans Andy Murray and Gael Monfils.
Adding the Serbian to that hit list would send shockwaves through the men’s draw.
Top women’s match – Aryna Sabalenka v Lesia Tsurenko
Defending champion Sabalenka has looked in imperious form so far in Melbourne, though it should be noted both of her opening wins were against qualifiers. She has only dropped a combined six games in her victories over Ella Seidel and Brenda Fruhvirtova.
It is 1-1 in the head-to-head against Tsurenko, but their last meeting was Sabalenka’s win at Indian Wells in 2019.
Who else is playing on day 6 of the 2024 Australian Open?
US Open champion Coco Gauff began the season by winning the Auckland Open and she has continued that form in Melbourne. Having seen off Caroline Dolehide in the previous round, she plays another American in Alycia Parks.
Iga Swiatek has arguably had the hardest draw out of the seeds so far, but Andrey Rublev may feel he has a strong case to beat that. After needing five sets to beat Thiago Seyboth Wild and then seeing off Wimbledon quarter-finalist Christopher Eubanks, Russia’s world No. 5 takes on 29th seed Sebastian Korda.
Fourth seed Jannik Sinner has looked in good form so far but faces a step up in class against Sebastian Baez, while Stefanos Tsitsipas plays Luca van Assche.
Home favourite Alex de Minaur is moved out to John Cain Arena for his match with Flavio Cobolli, while Taylor Fritz takes on Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan.
Show courts order of play, singles – Friday, 19 January (all UK times)
Rod Laver Arena
- Lesia Tsurenko [28] v Aryna Sabalenka [2]
- Luca van Assche v Stefanos Tsitsipas [7]
Night session (from 08:00)
- Novak Djokovic [1] v Tomas Martin Etcheverry [30]
- Storm Hunter v Barbora Krejcikova [9]
Margaret Court Arena
- Jannik Sinner [4] v Sebastian Baez [26]
- Alycia Parks v Coco Gauff [4]
Night session (from 08:00)
- Maria Timofeeva v Beatrice Haddad Maia [10]
- Sebastian Korda [29] v Andrey Rublev [5]
John Cain Arena
- Amanda Anisimova v Paula Badosa
- Taylor Fritz [12] v Fabian Marozsan
- Alex de Minaur [10] v Flavio Cobolli
Kia Arena
- Tomas Machac v Karen Khachanov [15]
- Magdalena Frech v Anastasia Zakharova
- Adrian Mannarino [20] v Ben Shelton [16]
1573 Arena
- Elina Avanesyan v Marta Kostyuk
Read the full article Here