Swiatek, Pegula, Anisimova, Gauff advance to second round at Australian Open

MELBOURNE: Poland’s Iga Swiatek booked her place in the second round of the Australian Open 2026 with a 7-6(5), 6-3 win over China’s Yuan Yue, USA’s Jessica Pegula eased past Russia’s Anastasia Zakharova 6-2, 6-1, while Amanda Anisimova defeated her fellow American Simona Walter 6-3, 6-2.

Meanwhile, third seed Coco Gauff began Australian Open campaign in style on Monday, registering a 6-2, 6-3 first-round victory over Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova in the women’s singles, according to the WTA website.

World No. 2 Iga Swiatek advanced to the second round of the Australian Open with a 7-6(5), 6-3 victory over Yuan Yue. Pushed into a tight first-set tiebreak, Swiatek raised her level at key moments before taking control early in the second set.

Iga Swiatek on her way into the second round in Melbourne. pic.twitter.com/8ra3YxrSpo

— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) January 19, 2026

After the win, Swiatek said she had a slow start but was pleased to work through it and close the match in straight sets. “There were some moments where I felt great, but the start of the match wasn’t that perfect. I’m happy that I worked through this and could, yeah, finish in two sets as you said. Also, during tiebreak play more aggressively and more precise”, Swiatek said as quoted by the WTA.

Jessica Pegula cruised past Anastasia Zakharova 6-2, 6-1. The American broke serve early and maintained constant pressure, earning break points in every Zakharova service game. Pegula said she was pleased to have a smooth match and was glad to avoid the tough battles others have faced early in the tournament.

“That was a pretty ideal situation that just happened. So that’s always good, you know. When those come around, you just take it, because I’ve seen a lot of really tough matches the last few days and I’m happy I’m not quite there yet”, she said.

In an all-American encounter, fourth seed Amanda Anisimova defeated her compatriot Simona Waltert 6-3, 6-2. After the win, Anisimova praised the Australian Open’s atmosphere and hoped she would get to play some night matches at the tournament.

“The crowd, the atmosphere, I love how rowdy it gets. Hopefully, I’ll be playing some night matches this week. But yeah, it’s just a beautiful city, beautiful courts, and I think every single player shares that sentiment,” she said as quoted by the WTA.

No. 3 seed Coco Gauff advanced to the second round of the Australian Open with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Kamilla Rakhimova. Despite dropping just four games, Gauff faced early struggles on her serve, hitting six double faults and saving five of six break points in the first set. She recovered strongly in the second set to close out the match, securing her 75th major career win.

After the match, Gauff said she struggled early but settled after the first game and played more smoothly for the rest of the match. “Once I got through kind of the first game, I had like three doubles in the first game, and once I got through that game, I mean, it was pretty much smooth sailing from there”, she said. (ANI)