Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!

The Australian Open is here and the stakes are higher than ever!

As always, there is plenty to discuss, so let’s get into this week’s topics!

New Videos!!

We have another brand new video on our channel this week!

It is a deep dive on the current state of Canadian tennis.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

What Happened Last Week?

The final Australian Open tuneup tournaments are complete, and there are a few players who will be entering the year’s first major with plenty of confidence. 

In Adelaide, Felix Auger-Aliassime continued his stellar start to the 2025 season with a 6-3 3-6 6-1 win over Sebastian Korda in the final. Also, Madison Keys came out on top of an all-American clash against Jessica Pegula in the 500-level final 6-3 4-6 6-1.

Over in Hobart, another American was victorious with McCartney Kessler getting the win over Elise Mertens in three sets 6-4 3-6 6-0.

Gael Monfils rolled back the years, winning his 13th career title in Auckland with a 6-3 6-4 win over qualifier Zizou Bergs.

Live Ranking Update: The Biggest Movers Of The Week

McCartney Kessler picked up her 2nd career title, and the former Florida Gator is now up 21 spots to a career high #46.

Madison Keys is up 6 spots and back inching closer to the top ten at #14.

Gael Monfils is back into the top 50 at #41 with his title this week. Auckland finalist Zizou Bergs is up 6 spots to a new career high of #60.

Felix Auger-Aliassime is up 6 spots to #23, and Tommy Paul is close to a top 10 debut, moving up 1 spot this week from #12 to #11.

Major Tournament Updates

It’s time for the first major of the year!

The Australian Open (January 12 - January 27) will be the focus for the next two weeks.

The tournament has already been hit with some nasty rain delays, but top players like Aryna Sabalenka, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, & Novak Djokovic have remained mostly unaffected and advanced to the 2nd round.

The Aussie Open is also delivering on the upsets already. To clarify, the first round is being played over three days, so not everyone has played yet as of Monday.

On the men’s side, #10 Grigor Dimitrov, #11 Stefanos Tsitsipas, #23 Alejandro Tabilo, & #28 Sebastian Baez are all seeds that were eliminated in the first round. 

Dimitrov’s loss is unique though because he retired injured mid-way through the first set.

For the women, #16 Jelena Ostapenko, #21 Victoria Azarenka, & #29 Linda Noskova were on the wrong side of their first round matches. 

Ostapenko’s loss was the most shocking as she fell to Belinda Bencic, who is playing in her first Grand Slam tournament since the 2023 US Open.

Watch Out For These Players

Gael Monfils:

Monfils is one of those players who you can never count out in a match, no matter what the score is.

That sentiment could not have been more true this week. In the first round, the 38 year-old Frenchman trailed Spain’s Pedro Martinez 6-1 5-2 before mounting a furious comeback, eventually winning 1-6 7-6 (5) 6-3. 

Gael carried this momentum ALL the way to the title, becoming the oldest ATP titleist since Roger Federer in the process. 

He has a tough draw at the Australian Open, facing Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round, but this title run should give Monfils some much needed momentum and motivation going into that tricky match.

Madison Keys:

Keys is no stranger to success in Australia, making her first career major semifinal there in 2015.

Madi also made the semifinals in 2022, the last time she won the title in Adelaide. And guess which title she just won…

The American has a tough draw with potential matchups with Danielle Collins, Jasmine Paolini, & Iga Swiatek looming.

How poetic would it be for Keys to reach another semifinal in Melbourne on the 10 year anniversary of her very first.

Off The Court

Rybakina Disagrees With Coach Suspension:

Elena Rybakina revealed in a press conference that she does not agree with the WTA’s decision to provisionally suspend her former coach Stefan Vukov.

She maintains that Vukov has never “mistreated” her, and that she has never made a complaint about him. 

Rybakina had previously announced that she would no longer be working with Vukov, and then later hired Goran Ivanisevic as her new coach.

However, she announced earlier this month that Vukov would be rejoining her team. That is when the WTA announced the suspension. The WTA added that “Vukov is not eligible to obtain a WTA credential at this time”. This means that he cannot go into player-only areas like practice courts or training areas.

It is unclear how long the ban will be or if it could be lifted in time for the Australian Open. 

Rybakina opens her 2025 major campaign against 16 year-old Australian wildcard Emerson Jones.

Sinner Appeal Hearing Set For April:

Jannik Sinner will appear in front of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in a closed-doors hearing April 16-17 at its headquarters in Lausanne.

Sinner will be up against the World Anti-Doping Agency, WADA, which is seeking at least a 1-year ban for the Italian world no. 1.

WADA is challenging a decision made last year by the International Tennis Integrity Agency not to suspend Sinner for what it concluded was accidental contamination by a banned anabolic steroid last March. 

Sinner will compete on tour as scheduled until then. 

Kyrgios Hints At Retirement:

Following his opening round defeat at the Australian Open, Nick Kyrgios told reporters that he has likely played his final singles match at the event.

Kyrgios was defeated in straight sets by Jacob Fearnley, but was not playing at peak health.

 “I went out there, I would say 65% of my capacity”. Nick went on to say that he “realistically can’t see [himself] playing a singles match here again”.

Nick is still scheduled to compete in the doubles alongside countryman Thanasi Kokkinakis, and has “no regrets” about it.

Highlights Of The Week

Check out some of the highlights from last week’s action!