If Stefanos Tsitsipas fails to live up to past successes at the Australian Open, it will not be for lack of focus. The Greek fourth seed, twice a semi-finalist at Melbourne Park, was so dialled in during his 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (2-7), 6-4 victory over the gifted Frenchman Benoît Paire that, when the final point was won, he remained oblivious to the outcome.
As his bemused opponent stood waiting to shake hands, Tsitsipas, who had just converted the first of three match points with a sumptuous backhand return, marched across the baseline in readiness for the next point. Only when the chair umpire declared the final score did the realisation dawn that it was all over.
It was a bizarre conclusion to an aesthetically pleasing tussle between two of the game’s most gifted shot-makers. The highlight came midway through the third set when Paire, with a wand-like flourish of the racket behind his back, casually rolled a topspin forehand through his legs. As the rally continued, Paire feathered a textbook drop shot down the line, forcing the scrambling Tsitsipas to show admirable balance and control as he crafted a dinked reply. Paire, though, had read the situation and was swiftly on to the ball, angling a winner across the face of the net.
But if the Frenchman took maximum points for artistic merit, the only standard of evaluation Tsitsipas will care about two months after undergoing surgery on his right elbow is the scoreline that confirms his progress to a fourth-round showdown with Taylor Fritz, who reached that stage of a slam for the first time with a hard-earned 6-0, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Spanish 15th seed Roberto Bautista Agut.
“It feels good to be playing and be part of the last 16,” said Tsitsipas, 23, who is slowly playing his way into form after a tentative start to his Australian campaign that saw him sit out his opening singles match at the ATP Cup as a precautionary measure.
“I’m happy with the match today. I feel like there were certain moments where my opponent didn’t work as hard as I had to do for the point. It was just one-shot execution from his side, serving really well, coming up with good shots.
“But I’m happy with the way I fought at the end. He certainly didn’t have to work as hard as I did for the points, but that paid off at the end with me being consistent and patient when I had to be.”
Daniil Medvedev, the second seed and title favourite in the absence of Novak Djokovic, made relatively serene progress against Botic van de Zandschulp, the 57th-ranked Dutchman. Van de Zandschulp had extended him to a fourth set at the US Open, but here Medvedev was in control from the outset, securing an early break and holding his own serve serve throughout as he wrapped up a 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 win.
“Botic played really good,” said the Russian, who will next face Maxime Cressy, the unseeded American who recently reached his first ATP final in Melbourne. “I even want to say he played, in my opinion, better than in US Open, but maybe served a little bit worse – and that’s where I took my chances.
“Almost every game where I could break him, I managed to do it. I think I had two games where I didn’t break him when I had break points, but it was enough today. I’m pretty happy about my level: served well, didn’t get broken – even if he had opportunities – was running pretty well, doing some good shots. I’m happy about my performance and looking forward to the next match.”
The same cannot be said for Medvedev’s compatriot Andrey Rublev, who was undone 7-5, 7-6 (7-3), 3-6, 6-3 by former finalist Marin Cilic. Rublev, the fifth seed, reached the last eight a year ago but was unable to build on a third-set fightback as the Croatian thrived in the quick late-night conditions. Cilic, whose bold approach was rewarded with 55 winners in all, won 85% of his first-service points and served 24 aces.
“The match was extremely high-quality tennis,” said Cilic, the 27th seed, who will face Felix Auger Aliassime next after the Canadian saw off Britain’s Dan Evans 6-4, 6-1, 6-1.
“It’s difficult to be passive against him. You have to be really proactive and then try to do as much as you can from your part of the court. A great part from me today was high-quality serving, and that helped me so much to be a little bit freer on my shots, on the returns.”