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AO Live: Why Novak won't win record breaking Aus Open
By SEN
Day three is up and running with play set to get under way at 11am on the outer courts.
Temperatures are a little cooler than Monday which could bring welcome relief to players with three falling victim to insane cramping and heat stroke on Monday.
__3:00pm - MCENROE: WHY NOVAK WILL NOT WIN 11TH AUS OPEN CROWN
Novak Djokovic’s chances of an 11th Australian Open title have been written off by legend John McEnroe.
The former world No 1 and 24-time Grand Slam winner eased through his opening round clash against Spain's Pedro Martinez, winning 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 victory, but it’s what awaits the Serbian at the pointy end of the tournament that’s got McEnroe worried.
Despite victory over Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in last year’s edition of the grand slam, McEnroe can’t see Djokovic beating him or Jannik Sinner this time around.
At 38-years-old, it’s a stretch too far for the star.
"In his heart of hearts and in my opinion, no," the American said when asked about Djokovic’s hopes of a dream run in Melbourne.
"I don't think he can beat both of those guys when he has already had to go through five matches - that's the problem.
“That's the reality he has talked about."
Djokovic’s opening round clash in Melbourne was his first competitive match since October.
He was forced to withdraw from his Aus Open warm-up tournament as well saying his body was not ready.
So why is he still playing?
"A lot of people might think, 'Why are you still going at this point, you haven't won in a couple of years and you are so used to winning?' Why not, would be the question?",” McEnroe added.
Next up for Djokovic is Italian qualifier Francesco Maestrelli.
2:10pm: NO. 12 SEED READY TO FORFEIT AO, IF CALLED UPON
Norway's Casper Ruud could see his Australian Open end early should he get a life-changing call.
The No. 12 seed, with his wife Maria, is expecting to have their first child any day now, which could see him depart the tournament even if he is still contending.
Following his first round victory over Italian Mattia Bellucci at Margaret Court Arena on Monday, the three-time Grand Slam singles finalist will make sure that he is in attendance for the birth.
"I have to thank Maria for letting me go in the first place. I know she's at home resting, getting ready (for the birth)," he said post-game.
"If she goes into labour, I probably won't be here the next day.
"But that's the way it goes. There's more to life than just tennis, but I'm going to be here for as long as I can and as long as Maria lets me."
1:54pm: AUSSIE WILDCARD CLAIMS OPENING SET
In his first main draw match of 2026, Aussie Chris O'Connell has gotten off to a good start at ANZ Arena.
Having been given a wildcard entry into the tournament, the 31-year-old is making the most as he wins the opening set 6-4 against his American opponent, Nishesh Basavareddy.
Basavareddy has a chance to break with the set at 3-2, but O'Connell recovered the opportunity.
And when given the chance to break when both were tied on four games apiece, the Aussie took it with both hands with some solid forehand winners.
He previously advanced to the third round of the men's singles here at Melbourne Park in 2022.
12:48pm: MAYA JOINT CRASHES OUT IN STRAIGHT SETS
After plenty of success on the Australian front on Day 2, things have started poorly on Day 3.
Australia's highest-ranked female player in singles, Maya Joint, has been knocked out in straight sets by the Czech Republic's Tereza Valentova (6-4, 6-4) at John Cain Arena.
The No.30 seed struggled to build any momentum during the match with only 58% of her returns landing in, compared to Valentova's 81%.
The 19-year-old hasn't had the smoothest start to 2026, having missed Australia's opening match in the United Cup due to illness but still managed to progress to the quarters at Adelaide.
However, she now finds herself out of the Australian Open in the first round for a second year running.
12:34pm: AUSSIE WILDCARD NABS FIRST GRAND SLAM WIN
And another Aussie woman gets it done out on Kia Arena.
Following Storm Hunter and Talia Gibson winning their first round match, Taylah Preston has secured her spot in the second round.
It's the first time that the 20-year-old has done so at a Grand Slam as she defeated China's Shuai Zhang 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.
12pm: STAR'S EXPLOSIVE CLAIMS ON PUTIN AND RUSSIAN PLAYERS
Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova has unleashed on the WTA and ITF for allowing Russian players to continue to play on the tour despite the ongoing war between the two nations.
Oliynykova, who opened her Aus Open campaign against Madison Keys, accused Russian players on the tour of supporting Putin, paying for drones and being different personalities behind the scenes.
“I’m absolutely not OK with this decision,” she said when asked by Bounces how she felt about Russian players still being on tour. “I strongly believe these players should be disqualified like in other sports. I think it’s very sad that people are losing attention because this is a long war; of course they are not doing research.
“When they see here a (Russian) player, they see just—if we will talk about WTA players—girls playing tennis. And it all looks fun: nice dresses, they’re filming some TikToks, making posts on Instagram, and they look like normal girls. And people don’t feel like these people are dangerous.
“But actually, if you research, you will find that many of them are supporting Putin or Lukashenko—and this is something which is super easy to find.
“And I was trying to speak about this a lot; maybe now when I will get more attention, maybe people will hear it. Because many of them are not the people that they’re showing on the TV or on the tennis courts. Because behind it, there are some really horrible things, and it’s not OK that people are ignoring this.
“Because their opinions, and the things they are doing, they are dangerous. These players are one of the reasons why my apartment was shaking before I came here. And now I’m here and I see, like, the same kind of treatment for me and for them.
“I mean, they paid for the Shahed drones. They supported the fact that their army is doing this— and it’s not OK. And now we are absolutely not in the same condition, and this is their mistake as well.”
Athletes in numerous other sports have been excluded from competition since Vladimir Putin invaded the Ukraine in 2022, but tennis has maintained participation for the most part.
Wimbledon famously banned Russian and Belarusian athletes form the 2023 edition but has since aligned with other slams and event which prevent both nationalities form displaying national flags and symbols.
11:10am AUSSIE CRITICISES OWN "EGOTISTIC" COMMENTS
It’s been almost four years since Daria Kasatkina called out Vladimir Putin, publicly opposed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and came out as gay.
Her brave comments drew enormous praise from around the world and ultimately led to her switching allegiances in 2025 and becoming an Australian citizen.
Reflecting on the interview she gave to a Russian YouTuber in 2022, the world No 43 says she was egotistic to have made the comments and now carries a level of guilt for the impact it has had on her family.
“In some way, it was quite egoistic,” Kasatkina, who now lives in Melbourne, told the UK Telegraph. “My mum and my father, they’re on pensions, so it would be very difficult for them to switch countries.”
The 28-year-old goes on to explain why she felt the time was right to share her frustrations while so many others from her home country stayed silent.
“As Russian athletes, particularly tennis players, we ended up at a situation where every press conference was about the same thing,” she said. “It’s a very difficult topic to discuss, and not everybody is ready to say anything.
“Not just athletes, but most of the people, they know almost nothing about the political situation. But I just felt that I had to do it. It was bothering me for a long time. Still, I’m not judging the people who decide to stay quiet. I mean, it’s their choice. I cannot judge them.”
Life has been up and down for Kasatkina since her defection. She was forced to end her 2025 season early having reached “breaking point”.
“After this switch, I would say that the stress actually increased a little bit, because it’s a big change,” she said. “But then, gradually, it slowed down.
“After my break I was able to manage my mental state, and figure out a lot of things, which helped me a lot. Now I’m in a much better place than a couple of months ago, and I’m super happy. I can say that my decision was 100 per cent right.”
9:54am AUSSIE LABELLED 'MOST FRUSTRATING PLAYER OF ALL"
Australia's Alexei Popyrin has been labelled the "most frustrating player" on tour after his five set defeat in the opening round of the Australian Open.
The 26-year-old, who last ear reached a career high ranking of 19th in the world, has struggled to find consistent form in recent months with his early departure in Melbourne adding to first round losses in Brisbane and Adelaide this month.
Defeat to Alexandre Muller on Monday was a huge blow for the Aussie who said he needs to have a serious think about his future in the sport.
One man that has followed his journey up close is SEN's Brett Phillips who believes if Popyrin pulled things together he would actually be a better player than compatriot and world No 6 Alex de Minaur.
Lamenting Popyrin's loss on a day whihc saw six Aussies progress to the second round, Phillips said: "Could have been seven if it was not for the capitulation of Alexei Popyrin.
"He’s my most frustrating tennis player. You see the talent but gee it’s a yo-yo. He can get up – we were in awe of his first set last night.
"If he could play like this all the time he could be a world beater…if he could all come together he would be better than De Minaur. But it’s the concentration lapses and the brain fades, the ability not to engage.
"That's the simple difference with Alex top 10 and Alexei 60-ish in the world.
"I’ve always associated with Alexei, he doesn’t appear to have that real grit, he wont dig deep like Alex who plays every game like it’s his last. Pound for pound he (Popyrin) is more talented but doesn’t have the same heart.
"He will just become one of those players that sits in the top 100, living a pretty good life but won’t fulfil the talent they have got.
"They will be happy to be third round or there abouts. Alex talks like a winner, he wants to raise the bar, hes not here to make up numbers. The difference in mind set is so stark to me."
9am CULT HERO BRINGS OPEN TO STANDSTILL
There were insane scenes at the Australian Open on Monday with queues to watch a world No 49 bringing the grand slam to a standstill.
Court 6 had a huge security presence on day two of the tournament as Filipino sensation Alexandra Eala made her way out for her opening round clash.
Thousands of fans were turned away from the court with an incredible video shared on social media showing just how long the queue was to catch a glimpse of the 20-year-old who was up against American Alycia Parks.
“I walked out to her court, there was security stopping people on a walk way,” Brett Phillips told SEN Breakfast. “It’s phenomenal.
“She’s become cult figure. She beat Swiatek last year. She is putting Philippine tennis on the map. She will inspire a nation.
“She was walking through the crowd with about 10 security around her. She’s a rockstar.” While the result didn’t go her way, Eala was over whelmed with her support.
"It was so heart-warming," Eala told her post-match media conference.
"That's one of the things that makes a loss like today a little bit harder as I know a lot of people were rooting for me.
"The fact that everyone came out and really squeezed into that cosy court, I really appreciate it. "I felt so loved. Even when I was 5-2 down in the third, I still felt the love. So I'm really appreciative and super thankful."
Her rise to cult hero figure was kick-started by an incredible run at last year’s Miami Open where she beat Iga Świątek, Madison Keys and Jeļena Ostapenko on her way to the semi-finals.
