Australian Open 2026: Jannik Sinner enters second round as Hugo Gaston retires at two sets down
World no.2 Jannik Sinner began his title defence at the Australian Open 2026 with a walkover win after Hugo Gaston retired abruptly after the 2nd set.
World no.2 Jannik Sinner reached the men's singles second round at the Australian Open 2026 after getting a walkover against France's Hugo Gaston in her opening round clash at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne on Tuesday. Gaston was two sets down when he abruptly retired from the contest as Sinner booked his spot in the next round.
Sinner, who started the match strongly, looked on top of his game in the first-round clash against Gaston. His heavy baseline hitting and exceptional court coverage saw him wrap up the first two sets 6-2, 6-1 in dominant fashion before his opponent retired out, having earlier taken a tumble during the match.
Sinner was cruising towards what looked like a dominant win, but was given a free walkover into the second round after Gaston decided to retire. The Italian world no.2 spent just over an hour on the court to wrap up the first two sets in his opening round clash and will take on Australia's James Duckworth or Croatian Dino Prižmić in his next game.
While Gaston got up after his tumble and decided to continue, he called it quits after 68 minutes with an apparent injury. The French player had earlier been addressed by his medical staff on the court and didn't feel like he was at his best to continue after losing two sets against Sinner.
The Italian world no.2 came up with a nice gesture for Gaston after his decision to retire as he consoled his opponent, who sat on the sidelines with his head in his hands before walking down the tunnel. Sinner admitted Gaston was not at his best, pointing out how his serving speed had gone down.
"I saw that he was not serving at pace. It's not the way you want to win the match, but he's such a talented player," said Sinner about his opponent.
"So I knew from the beginning that I had to play a very high level and was trying to be as aggressive as possible, which I've done. I'm very happy to be back here, it's a very special place for me," he added.
Jannik Sinner aiming to match Novak Djokovic
Sinner, who defeated Alexander Zverev in the final to win his second consecutive Australian Open title last year, will be aiming to match 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic's feat Down Under this year. If Sinner goes on to defend his title successfully at the Australian Open 2026, he will become only the 2nd man, after Djokovic, to win three Australian Open titles in a row in the Open era.
Taylor Fritz beats Valentin Royer to enter 2nd round
American Taylor Fritz battled past Valentin Royer to enter the second round at the Australian Open 2026 on Tuesday. World no.9 Fritz beat Royer 7-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 in a four-setter to make it to the next round, where he will take on Vit Kopriva. Despite Fritz being the superior-ranked player, Royer, who was making his debut at the Australian Open, stretched him to the limits during their first-round meeting.