2026 Australian Open: Yuan Yue narrowly loses to Swiatek after a strong start, showing promising form for the future

On January 19th Beijing time, the second day of the 2026 Australian Open main draw featured a night match at Rod Laver Arena, where Chinese player Yuan Yue was defeated 6-7(5), 3-6 by the tournament's second seed Swiatek in a two-hour battle, missing out on advancing to the second round.

Yuan Yue

Yuan Yue started strong, quickly taking control with aggressive, fast-paced shots, especially putting considerable pressure on Swiatek during her service games and breaking twice to lead 5-3. However, at 5-4, she failed to convert her service game to close the set, leading to a tiebreak where Swiatek performed slightly better and won the first set 7-5.

In the second set, Yuan Yue faced a double break and fell behind 0-3 but refused to give up, managing to break back and keep the score close. Ultimately, Swiatek capitalized on her second match point in the ninth game to secure a 6-3 victory and the overall match win.

Swiatek

Although Yuan Yue has yet to break her losing streak in Grand Slam main draws, her performance in this match was commendable, and it is expected she will achieve greater success on the tour this year. For Swiatek, this marks her eighth consecutive year advancing past the first round in Melbourne, and with this win, she takes a solid step toward achieving a career Grand Slam. Swiatek’s next opponent in the second round will be Buzkova, who defeated Zhalazha 6-2, 7-5.

(Written and edited by: Dato)