Wang Meili fiercely battled Aniva, the defending champion was eliminated and her ranking plummeted, while the young player made a cross sign on camera.

In just three minutes daily, stay informed about global tennis news. Hello tennis fans, today is Monday, January 26, 2026. Welcome to the midday news report brought to you by "Tennis Home."

Early this morning Beijing time, the ninth day of the 2026 Australian Open unfolded. On the singles court, China's second-ranked Wang Xinyu took on the 4th seed and American second-ranked Anisimova at John Cain Arena. The highly anticipated match was scheduled to start at 10:30 AM Beijing time but the players only entered the court at 11:00 AM. At the time of this report, the first set was tied at 6-6, heading into a tiebreak.

In the women's singles fourth round on Rod Laver Arena, the 6th seed Pegula defeated the 9th seed Keys 6-3, 6-4, ending the latter’s title defense. This marks Pegula’s fourth time reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals, matching her personal best at this tournament, and her ninth Grand Slam quarterfinal overall. Meanwhile, the losing defending champion Keys lost over 1700 ranking points and dropped out of the top 15 in the world rankings, currently sitting at 16th.

Two other key matches today will take place at 1 PM and 4 PM Beijing time, featuring Leylah Fernandez vs. Mertens and English vs. Swiatek respectively.

In doubles, the women’s third-round match that finished near noon saw Hsieh Su-wei and Ostapenko easily defeat Kenin and Siegemund 6-3, 6-2, advancing smoothly to the quarterfinals.

Yesterday’s singles fourth round featured the 12th seed Ukrainian young star Svitolina in great form, beating the 8th seed Russian rising star Mira Andreeva 6-2, 6-4. She remains undefeated this season with nine straight wins and reached the Australian Open quarterfinals for the fourth time in her career, marking her 14th Grand Slam quarterfinal. Next, she will face the 3rd seed and top American Gauff, who overcame the 19th seed Czech veteran Muchova 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, maintaining a 5-0 head-to-head record against her, reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals for three consecutive years and the Grand Slam quarterfinals for the tenth time overall.

Moreover, the victorious Svitolina has defeated Russian opponents (Schneider and young Mira) in two consecutive rounds. Besides refusing to take photos with opponents, after each win, the young player drawsХon camera. Fans who searched found this symbolizes the equal-armed cross representing victory in Ukrainian culture, expressing hope for Ukraine's triumph in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Turning to the men’s court: this morning Beijing time, the lower half singles fourth round began. Near noon, the 5th seed Italian Musetti faced the 9th seed American Fritz. They have met six times before, tied at 3-3. At the time of this report, the Italian took the first set 6-2.

Yesterday in the men’s singles upper half fourth round, the 6th seed home favorite Deminal played impressively, sweeping the 10th seed Kazakh star Bublik 6-4, 6-1, 6-1, advancing to the quarterfinals for the second year in a row. This marks Deminal’s seventh Grand Slam quarterfinal, but in all previous six, he has yet to win a match at this stage, always falling short. This time, he will face the top seed Alcaraz, against whom he trails 0-5. Can the home favorite break this unfortunate streak on home soil?

Finally, a guess and recognition challenge. The photo below shows a player serving. Without hints, can you identify who she is?

Last time’s guess received correct answers from fans. Yes, the person in the picture is the American second-ranked Anisimova.

(Source: Tennis Home Author: Independent Thinker)