By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday January 16, 2025
Learner Tien is the youngest of five American men in action on Day 7 at the Australian Open.
Photo Source: Andy Cheung/Getty
Day 7 of the Australian Open will feature third-round matchups for the bottom half on the women’s side and the top half on the men’s side.

Here’s the schedule for the big showcourts:
And the full order of play is here:
Here’s what we’ll be keeping close tabs on…
Young Americans
The next generation of American men’s tennis is here, just as the current generation remains. They’ll be represented on Day 7 in Melbourne, as five Americans will contest third-round matches.
We’ll list them from youngest to oldest: 19-year-old Learner Tien, he of the takedown of No.5-seeded Daniil Medvedev on Thursday night, will face fellow southpaw Corentin Moutet; 20-year-old Alex Michelsen will go against hard-hitting Russian Karen Khachanov; 22- year-old Ben Shelton matches up with 18th-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti; 27-year-old Taylor Fritz, the No.4 seed who has dropped just eight games through two rounds, faces ageless wonder Gael Monfils; finally, 31-year-old Marcos Giron, who had never won an Australian Open main draw match prior to this year, lines up against top-seeded Jannik Sinner.
It could be a momentous day for the American men, and no matter what happens, they’ve done brilliantly to place a total of six in the round of 32.
Tien is bidding to become the youngest player into the round of 16 at the Australian Open since Nadal in 2005. He's also the only teenage player remaining in the men's singles draw.
Iga Meets Emma Again
Emma Raducanu bravely battled past hard-hitting Amanda Anisimova on Day 5, putting forth a gritty, resilient effort to reach the third round. She’ll face an entirely different challenge on Saturday as No.2-seeded Iga Swiatek waits. The Pole has won all three previous meetings with Raducanu in straight sets, and she’s been good thus far in Melbourne, dropping just nine games through her first two rounds.
“It's going to be a match for me where I feel like I don't really have much expectation externally,” 61st-ranked Raducanu said of facing the five-time major champion for the fourth time. “I'm looking forward to going out there and testing my game against the best, because ultimately, you play tennis, and you live for these matches. It's going to be a great buzz of adrenaline.”
Into the Great Wide Open
Have a look at the bottom section of the top half of the men’s singles draw and you will immediately see that there is a great opportunity waiting for somebody – but who? Either Lorenzo Sonego, Fabian Marozsan, Moutet or Tien will make the quarterfinals, and none of the four unseeded players has ever reached that far at a major. Moutet and Sonego have each reached the second week at a major previously, but not in Melbourne – will their relative experience advantage pay dividends?
Other Notable Day 7 Clashes
Elena Rybakina has been strong despite the swirling coaching controversy that surrounds her in Melbourne. She’s dropped just five games and will look to stay hot against 2024 semifinalist Dayana Yastremska on Day 7… Aussie Alex de Minaur will look to keep home fans happy as he faces Francisco Cerundolo… Jasmine Paolini will look to pick up right where she left off in 2024 by reaching the second week – the fourth-seeded Italian faces Elina Svitolina in what should be a thrilling battle... And we'd be remiss if we didn't mention defending men's singles champion Jannik Sinner, who will face American Marcos Giron on Rod Laver as he goes for his 10th consecutive Australian Open win.