Sinner Faces Rune in Australian Open Showdown

MELBOURNE, Australia — World No. 1 Jannik Sinner will face Denmark’s Holger Rune in a highly anticipated fourth-round match at the Australian Open late Sunday night into Monday morning local time. The clash, set for Rod Laver Arena, marks their first Grand Slam meeting and comes after an evenly split head-to-head record of two wins each.

The match, scheduled to begin at 4 a.m. local time, follows Sinner’s dominant performance in the earlier rounds, where he defeated Nicolas Jarry, Tristan Schoolkate, and Marcos Giron without dropping a set. Rune, meanwhile, has battled through three five-set matches, including a thrilling victory over Matteo Berrettini in the second round.

“If I want to go further in this tournament, I need to improve,” Sinner said after his third-round win. “I hope to raise my level in the next round. My net points percentage wasn’t good against Giron, so I’m working on that. Mentally, I’m trying to stay focused, which is the most important thing.”

The last meeting between the two came nearly a year ago on April 12, 2024, when Sinner triumphed 6-4, 6-7, 6-3 on the clay courts of Monte Carlo. Rune, however, won their first two encounters, including a semifinal victory at the 2022 Sofia Open.

In another notable match, Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego will face American qualifier Learner Tien, who stunned world No. 3 Daniil Medvedev in the second round. The 19-year-old Tien, ranked 121st, is making his Grand Slam breakthrough, while Sonego seeks his first quarterfinal appearance at a major.

On the women’s side, top seed Iga Swiatek of Poland will take on Germany’s Eva Lys in the day session. Meanwhile, Elina Svitolina of Ukraine advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Russia‘s Veronika Kudermetova, continuing her perfect record against Russian opponents since the start of the Ukraine-Russia conflict in 2022.

The matches will be broadcast live on Eurosport 1 HD, Eurosport 2 HD, Tim Vision, and streaming platforms including Dazn, Sky Go, Now, and Discovery+.