HIGHLIGHTS-Tennis-Australian Open day three

Highlights of the third day of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Wednesday, all times local (GMT +11): 2140 SAKKARI CRUISES PAST ZHANG

Fifth seed Maria Sakkari made light work of China's Zheng Qinwen, romping to a 6-1 6-4 win to set up a meeting with Veronika Kudermetova in the third round. 2025 OSAKA DOWNS BRENGLE

Defending champion Naomi Osaka put on a dominant performance to swat aside American Madison Brengle 6-0 6-4 in the second round. The Japanese former world number one survived a couple of poor games in the second set to set up a clash with Amanda Anisimova. READ MORE:

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2000 KREJCIKOVA CRUSHES WANG French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova continued her charge at Melbourne Park with a routine 6-2 6-3 win over China's Wang Xiyu. Up next for the Czech is Latvian 26th seed Jelena Ostapenko.

2005 MANNARINO KNOCKS OUT HURKACZ Unseeded Adrian Mannarino caused an upset as he breezed past 10th seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland 6-4 6-2 6-3 on John Cain Arena.

1840 BENCIC CRASHES OUT Amanda Anisimova stunned Olympic champion Belinda Bencic to progress to the third round with a clinical 6-2 7-5 victory. Anisimova, who won in Adelaide earlier this month, will play defending champion Naomi Osaka.

1805 SHAPOVALOV SURVIVES KWON SCARE Denis Shapovalov came back from the brink to oust Kwon Soon-woo 7-6(6) 6-7(3) 6-7(6) 7-5 6-2 in an absorbing 4-1/2 hour contest on Margaret Court Arena. The Canadian world number 14 faces 23rd seed Reilly Opelka in the third round.

"(I) knew going into it that it's going to be tough... But I did a good job of just flipping the script, kept fighting, and, yeah, really happy to get away with it," said Shapovalov. 1740 BERRETTINI SEES OFF KOZLOV

Seventh seed Matteo Berrettini overcame a minor hiccup in the second set to move into the third round with a 6-1 4-6 6-4 6-1 win over American Stefan Kozlov. The Italian will next face 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz, who became the youngest man to reach the third round at Melbourne Park since Bernard Tomic in 2011 after a 6-2 6-1 7-5 thrashing of Dusan Lajovic.

1644 DOMINANT NADAL BREEZES PAST HANFMANN Rafa Nadal continued his quest for a 21st Grand Slam title with a 6-2 6-3 6-4 victory over German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann, finishing with a blistering forehand. Up next for the sixth seed is Karen Khachanov.

1540 SVITOLINA PLEASED TO HAVE MONFILS BY HER SIDE Elina Svitolina, who married fellow professional Gael Monfils last year, said she was lucky to have found a partner who understands the demands of elite-level tennis.

"It's important to have someone who understands what I'm going through ... This sometimes can get complicated. The mental part is very important," Svitolina said. "For me to have Gael next to me at the same big events, it's lucky in our situation that we're both at the top of our sport so we're travelling pretty much the same tournaments."

1445 KEYS MOVES INTO THIRD ROUND Former U.S. Open runner-up Madison Keys staved off a late comeback attempt by Jaqueline Cristian to beat the Romanian 6-2 7-5. The Adelaide champion has won now seven straight matches and meets Wang Qiang next.

1402 BADOSA DELIGHTED WITH CENTRE COURT SPOTLIGHT Eighth seed Paula Badosa said playing on Rod Laver Arena following a breakthrough 2021 in which she tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of the Australian Open felt special. "I'm really proud of myself... one year ago I was locked in a room," Badosa said after beating Martina Trevisan. "Being here and playing centre court, because of me, not because I'm playing a seeded player, because now I'm the seeded player, I'm happy."

1337 BARTY TOO GOOD FOR BRONZETTI Top seed Ash Barty used her powerful forehand and delicate slices to devastating effect in a 6-1 6-1 win over Grand Slam debutant Lucia Bronzetti in 52 minutes.

Earlier, 15th seed Elina Svitolina advanced when Harmony Tan retired from their match with a knee issue and left the court in a wheelchair. Tan was down 6-3 5-7 5-1 when she got injured. Camila Giorgi reached the third round at Melbourne for the fourth time with a 6-2 7-6(2) win over Tereza Martincova.

1230 AZARENKA, BADOSA THROUGH TO THIRD ROUND Twice former Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka and Spanish eighth seed Paula Badosa were the first players into the third round at Melbourne Park.

Azarenka, the 2012 and 2013 champion, sealed a 6-1 6-2 victory over Swiss Jil Teichmann with a backhand winner, while Badosa firmed as a dark horse for the title with an equally dominant 6-0 6-3 win over Martina Trevisan on Rod Laver Arena. 1125 PLAY UNDERWAY ON DAY THREE

Play at Melbourne Park got underway on all courts as scheduled on day three of the year's first Grand Slam. A warm day is expected for the second round matches with the temperature already at 23 degrees Celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit) with a high of 28 forecast.

 

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