Three to See, Australian Open Day 8: Tsitsipas vs. Fritz; Halep vs. Cornet; Auger-Aliassime vs. Cilic

INTERVIEW: Marin Cilic, former Australian Open finalist

Before each day's play in Melbourne, we'll preview three must-see matches.

Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Taylor Fritz

Another big event, another chance for Fritz to put his game up against a top player from his generation. At Indian Wells last fall, Fritz came out on the winning end of two of those encounters, against Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini. A win over Tsitsipas would definitely make it feel like a trend, and make it feel as if Fritz was starting to belong with those guys.

Obviously it won’t be easy. Tsitsipas won his only tour meeting with the American, in 2019; he’s been the semifinals twice in Australia; and Fritz is coming off a five-set war of attrition with Roberto Bautista Agut. This might not be the ideal place and moment for Fritz to face Tsitsipas, but there might not be a better one. Winner: Fritz

Simona Halep vs. Alizé Cornet

If you like speed, rallies, feistiness and facial expressions—and who doesn’t, really?—this should be the match for you. The 30-year-old Halep leads the 32-year-old Cornet 3-1 in their head-to-head, but they haven’t faced off for seven years. Neither will overpower the other; both will “fight for every ball and fight to the end,” as Halep likes to say; and both will show every bit of their joy and frustration. Cornet is suddenly surging, but Halep is still the better player. Winner: Halep

Felix Auger-Aliassime vs. Marin Cilic

This is interesting, and tough to call. Auger-Aliassime has beaten three good opponents—Ruusuvuori, Davidovich Fokina and Evans—and looked progressively better with each match. The 21-year-old’s star also seems to be on the rise at the majors; he reached his first quarterfinal at Wimbledon last summer, and his first semifinal at the US Open two months later. But the 33-year-old Cilic may have even looked even better in his last match, a convincing four-set win over No. 5 seed Andrey Rublev; it was among the best performances of Cilic’s career. He is also 3-0 against Auger-Aliassime. Put all of that together and…this one could go either way. Winner: Cilic