Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka held on for a tough second-round win at the Australian Open on Wednesday, but last year's finalist Zheng Qinwen became the first Top 10 seed to fall this week.

Aryna Sabalenka is not entirely shocked about the sudden demise of Zheng Qinwen who failed to make it to the third round after losing to the tricky German, Laura Siegemund.

Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen won’t be repeating her surprising run to the Australian Open final in 2025 after a second-round upset loss to No. 97-ranked Laura Siegemund on Wednesday. Zheng lost the 2024 championship match at Melbourne Park to Aryna Sabalenka and went on to win the Olympic gold medal in Paris and finish

“I tried not to do too many fancy things, but really stick with my clear plan,” is how Laura Siegemund explained her second-round upset of Zheng Qinwen, the second-place finisher at last year’s Australian Open.

MELBOURNE – It wasn't often pretty, but two-time defending Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka extended ... Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat Laura Siegemund 6-1, 6-2 to also advance to the ...

Aryna Sabalenka overcame a tough challenge to advance at the Australian Open, defeating Jessica Bouzas Maneiro. Meanwhile, Laura Siegemund shocked Zheng Qinwen, the Paris Olympic gold medalist, ending her title pursuit.

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka survived a first Australian Open test, but last year’s beaten finalist Zheng Qinwen suffered a shock second-round exit. The Chinese star reached her first grand slam showpiece here last year before going on to win Olympic gold and establish herself as one of the best players in the world.

Aryna Sabalenka said early exits by big names at the Australian Open would not make her title defence any easier after the top seed saw one of her main title rivals go out in the second round with Zheng Qinwen's defeat by world number 97 Laura Siegemund.

While there have been plenty of surprises in the men’s bracket so far, most of the top women have progressed through the draw without an issue.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — It wasn't often pretty, but two-time defending Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka extended a few impressive streaks on Friday while becoming one of the first players to advance to the fourth round of the year's opening Grand Slam tournament.

Zheng lost the 2024 championship match at Melbourne Park to Aryna Sabalenka ... 36-year-old Siegemund, who played aggressively from the first point and put Zheng off her game. Sabalenka, the ...

Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus celebrates after defeating Clara Tauson of Denmark in their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025.