Victoria Mboko, a tennis player from Toronto, secured her spot in the third round of the women’s singles event at the Australian Open held in Melbourne. She defeated American player Caty McNally with a score of 6-4, 6-3. The Canadian, seeded 17th, will now face Clara Tauson from Denmark, seeded 14th, in the upcoming round. Tauson managed to win against Polina Kudermetova from Uzbekistan with a score of 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 after a match lasting one hour and 53 minutes.
During her victory over McNally that lasted one hour and 32 minutes, Mboko served an ace, hit 15 winners, made 24 unforced errors, and had two double faults. On the other hand, McNally had no aces, 14 winners, 27 unforced errors, and six double faults. Mboko won six out of nine service games and five out of nine return games.
In the women’s doubles category, Gabriela Dabrowski from Ottawa and her partner Luisa Stefani from Brazil defeated Jessica Pegula and McCartney Kessler from the United States with a score of 6-4, 7-6 (3). The winning duo will now face Elsa Jacquemot from France and Emiliana Arango from Colombia in the next round.
Dabrowski and Stefani took one hour and 46 minutes to defeat the American pair, achieving one ace and three double faults while the Americans had no aces or double faults. The winning duo excelled in their return game, securing 36 points compared to the Americans’ 28 points. Additionally, Dabrowski and Stefani had a 55 percent win rate on second serve, outperforming the Americans who had a 33 percent win rate.
In another women’s doubles match, Leylah Fernandez from Laval, Quebec, and her partner Timea Babos from Hungary suffered a loss to Cristina Bucsa from Moldova and Nicole Melichar-Martinez from the United States. The match lasted for two hours and four minutes, with Fernandez and Babos securing two aces and committing seven double faults. They managed to win only two out of 14 return games and 11 out of 15 service games. The winning pair won four out of 15 return games and 12 out of 14 service games.
On a different note, the Australian Open in Melbourne witnessed record attendance once again, with top-ranked players like Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz advancing to the next rounds in straight sets. The combined attendance for the day and night sessions reached 103,720 spectators, setting a new full-day record for the tournament. Sabalenka, a two-time Australian Open champion, and Alcaraz, aiming to secure his first title at Melbourne Park, were among the notable players who progressed.
Additionally, Coco Gauff and Alexander Zverev, the No. 3 seeds, also advanced to the third round. The tournament continues to attract large crowds, creating a vibrant tennis festival atmosphere at Melbourne Park.