It never ceases to amaze. Arthur Cazaux, 122nd player in the world, dismissed the Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor, 31st in the ATP rankings, on the night of Friday January 19 to Saturday January 20 (Paris time), in the third round of the Australian Open, in Melbourne. Impressive on court 3, the 21-year-old Frenchman won in three sets (6-3, 6-3, 6-1) and one hour and forty-six minutes of play.
The Montpellier thus confirms his feat from the previous round, where he took out the number 8 seed, the Dane Holger Rune. Before the tournament, the Frenchman had only won one match on the main circuit.
Against Tallon Griekspoor, who defeated Arthur Fils in the previous round, Arthur Cazaux was able to count on a powerful serve, 208 kilometers per hour on the first ball on average, and 12 aces (compared to 4 for his opponent). Also solid on the return, the Habs obtained 14 break points in the game, without having had any to defend.
Arthur Cazaux offered the French spectators present in Melbourne a sensational first week. He immediately eliminated the Serbian Laslo Djere, 33rd in the world, in five sets and three hours and twenty-six minutes of play. But his main achievement took place in the second round, when he beat Holger Rune. After his success against Tallon Griekspoor, the Montpellier native will face Polish Hubert Hurkacz, world number 9, in the round of 16.
Humbert bows, Dodin qualified
At the same time, Frenchman Ugo Humbert, seeded number 21, lost to 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist Hubert Hurkacz. After winning the first set, the Frenchman made too many unforced errors in the second set, unlike his opponent. The third was decided in a tie-break and turned to the advantage of the Pole, who finally won in four sets (3-6, 6-1, 7-6, 6-3) and two hours and forty-seven minutes of play.
Earlier in the Australian day, Océane Dodin emerged victorious in the all-French duel in the third round. The 95th player in the world won in two sets against Clara Burel (6-2, 6-4), 55th in the WTA rankings, who had eliminated the American Jessica Pegula (5th in the world) in the previous round. Océane Dodin, 27, reached the round of 16 of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her career. She will meet the Chinese Qinwen Zheng (12th in the world).
Of the twenty-four Tricolores entered at the Australian Open, three qualified for the round of 16. In addition to Arthur Cazaux and Océane Dodin, Adrian Mannarino came out of yet another marathon in five sets against the American Ben Shelton. The Frenchman has never done better than a round of 16 in Melbourne, in 2022, then eliminated by the Spaniard Rafael Nadal. The step will be just as high for him in 2024: he will face world number 1, Novak Djokovic.