Tennis

1:12 PM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — The grimace on Novak Djokovic‘s face after slipping on the white “MELBOURNE” lettering behind the baseline at Rod Laver Arena was enough to suggest the world No. 1’s chances of defending his Australian Open title had just taken a serious hit. In the third round at Melbourne Park on

12:00 PM ET When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tom Brady walloped the Kansas City Chiefs to earn Brady his seventh Super Bowl ring, it prompted a series of “Is Brady the GOAT of all GOATs?” conversations. Most of those greatest-of-all-time discussions ended, or should have, upon remembrance that Serena Williams exists. Like Brady, Williams

9:32 PM ET Associated Press Jessica Pegula has reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open by earning her first victory over an opponent ranked in the Top 10. The 61st-ranked American, whose parents own Buffalo’s NFL and NHL franchises, beat No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in Rod

7:56 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Upon advancing to her first major fourth round on Saturday, Jessica Pegula grabbed the blue marker to write on the on-court camera lens, as is customary for winners at the Australian Open. She could have written anything. Before saying hi to her sister, she wrote: “Let’s go Jen Brady!” 🇺🇸

5:00 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com As a smiling Serena Williams made her way to the net after defeating Aryna Sabalenka in three hard-fought sets Sunday in the fourth round of the 2021 Australian Open, 18-time major champion Chris Evert seemed in awe over what she had just seen. “Is this the next level of women’s

9:17 PM ET Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia — So good for so long lately, Naomi Osaka was just one point from the end of her lengthy winning streak, one point from leaving the Australian Open with a loss to Garbine Muguruza. Bleak as things looked for her late in a big-hitting matchup of Grand Slam

11:00 AM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — From warming up with your opponent before a match to the mandatory all-white Wimbledon outfits and strawberries and cream at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, tennis purists are proud of the sport’s rich history of tradition, and have always grappled with the idea of having it altered too

1:14 AM ET ESPN News Services Daniil Medvedev finally worked out how to a win a five-setter. All by himself. The fourth-seeded Daniil Medvedev was 0-6 in five-setters, and his match against No. 28-seeded Filip Krajinovic looked like it was going all the way in the third round of the Australian Open. After some angry

10:38 PM ET Jake Michaels Close ESPN Associate Editor Jake Michaels is a Melbourne-based sports writer who covers everything from Aussie Rules to Formula One, basketball to boxing. He joined ESPN in June, 2013 and works as an Associate Editor, covering sport in Australia and around the world. Matt Walsh Close Assistant Editor Matt Walsh

12:40 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com The scene at John Cain Arena was electric until the final moments Friday night. As the clock counted down on fans’ final seconds of freedom before a mandatory minimum five-day lockdown, as well as on Nick Kyrgios‘ run in the 2021 Australian Open, those in attendance only grew louder with

9:00 AM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — If Friday night turns out to be the last we see of fans at the Australian Open in 2021, Nick Kyrgios and world No. 3 Dominic Thiem didn’t disappoint, treating the vocal John Cain Arena crowd to a memorable evening of Grand Slam tennis, one which featured multiple code

4:46 AM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — Nick Kyrgios says he’s starting to feel like an old soul. Ahead of his Friday night (AEDT) third-round showdown with US Open champion Dominic Thiem, he’s used the term “veteran” despite being just 25 years of age, and even admitted to craving a glass of red wine following his

8:35 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Sofia Kenin, looking to defend her Australian Open singles title, was in tears after losing in straight sets to Kaia Kanepi in the second round on Thursday. “I feel like everyone was always asking me, ‘Would you want to [defend the title]?” she said about the overwhelming pressure she had

8:16 AM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — A bizarre post-match on-court dispute involving Italian pair Fabio Fognini and Salvatore Caruso has marred a gripping five-setter at the Australian Open. Fognini twice rallied from a set down to wrap up the match on John Cain Arena 4-6, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(12) in three hours and 56 minutes,

9:38 PM ET ESPN News Services MELBOURNE, Australia — No. 1-ranked Ashleigh Barty carries the hopes of her homeland at the Australian Open, which may be why she stumbled before closing out a second-round win Thursday. Barty blew a big lead in the second set and survived a shaky tiebreaker to beat fellow Aussie Daria

5:58 PM ET MELBOURNE, Australia — A little over 12 months ago, Novak Djokovic had been crowned Australian Open champion for the eighth time, American upstart Sofia Kenin secured a maiden Slam win, millions of dollars had been raised for Australia’s bushfire relief fund and the tennis season was just getting underway. And then the

5:16 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com When asked earlier this week about her legendary journey in professional tennis that has spanned over 25 years, Venus Williams took a moment and reflected on what was most important to her. “I’m trying to get better every day,” she said Monday after her first-round victory at the Australian Open.

2:00 AM ET Novak Djokovic‘s path to another Australian Open title won’t necessarily be an easy one for the No. 1 seed. Through to third round after his straight-sets victory against American Frances Tiafoe on Wednesday, Djokovic’s quarter of the draw includes 2020 US Open finalist Alexander Zverev and former Australian Open semifinalist Milos Raonic,