Venus Williams will become oldest woman to compete in an Australian Open main draw with wild card entry

Rafael Nadal, the defending men's champion, also plays Mackenzie McDonald, while the top-seeded woman, Iga Swiatek, continues her title bid with a match against Camila Osorio.

ByAssociated Press

Published Jan 17, 2023

PRESS CONFERENCE: I. Swiatek; Australian Open 1R Win

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WATCH: Iga Swiatek speaks with the media after her 2023 Australian Open first round win.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — LOOKAHEAD TO WEDNESDAY

Coco Gauff and Emma Raducanu will go head-to-head in the second round of the Australian Open. The seventh-seeded Gauff is the 18-year-old American who reached the final of the French Open last year. She also won the title in Auckland earlier this month. Raducanu has been battling a left ankle injury. The 20-year-old British player has not gone past the second round in any Grand Slam event since she won the U.S. Open in 2021. Rafael Nadal, the defending men's champion, plays Mackenzie McDonald. The top-seeded woman, Iga Swiatek, continues her title bid with a match against Camila Osorio

WEDNESDAY'S FORECAST

Showers early. High of 73 degrees Fahrenheit (23 Celsius).

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Australian Open lookahead: Gauff vs Raducanu in 2nd round

TUESDAY'S KEY RESULTS

Women's First Round: No. 4 Caroline Garcia beat Katherine Sebov 6-3, 6-0; No. 5 Aryna Sabalenka beat Tereza Martincova 6-1, 6-4; Elise Mertens beat Garbine Muguruza 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-1; No. 30 Karolina Pliskova beat Wang Ziyu 6-1, 6-3; Kimberley Birrell beat No. 31 Kaia Kanepi 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-1; Leylah Fernandez beat Alize Cornet 7-5, 6-2; Anna Karolina Schmiedlova beat No. 21 Martina Trevisan 6-3, 6-2.

Men's First Round: No. 5 Andrey Rublev beat Dominic Thiem 6-3, 6-4, 6-2; No. 8 Taylor Fritz beat Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5; Andy Murray beat No. 13 Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (10-6).

STAT OF THE DAY

2017 - Andy Murray's victory over Matteo Berrettini was the British player's first over a top-20 player at a Grand Slam tournament since beating No. 9 Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals of the 2017 French Open.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I cried like a baby." — Kimberley Birrell, on her reaction to hearing that she would receive a wild-card invitation for the Australian Open's main draw after Venus Williams pulled out of the tournament.

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