Australian Open 2023 Results Today, Highlights & Scores: Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka win, Andy Murray eliminated | Day 6 Recap
Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka logged big wins on Saturday, January 21, as the first week of action at the 2023 Australian Open came to a close, with both the men's and women's draws locking in the last-16 match-ups.
The last day of third-round matches at the tournament did not have as many upsets as witnessed during some of the early days. But there were nonetheless a few results that took fans by surprise. Here, we take a look at some of the big results from Day 6:
Novak Djokovic def. Grigor Dimitrov
Novak Djokovic battled and tumbled, but found a way past familiar foe Grigor Dimitrov to return to the second week of the Australian Open for the 15th time in his career.
There was little to choose between Dimitrov and Djokovic at the start of the match, with both going hard and flat at each other from the baseline. The Serb edged the opening set in a tiebreaker and finally had some daylight between him and his opponent when he took the second 6-3.
From that point on, even an injury scare and a late resurgence from the Bulgarian could not stop Djokovic from progressing into the fourth round.
Aryna Sabalenka def. Elise Mertens
Aryna Sabalenka continued her spectacular start to the 2023 season, extending her winning streak to 10 matches going all the way to her title-winning run at the WTA Finals in November last year.
Playing against her former doubles partner Elise Mertens, the fifth seed turned in yet another measured performance to close out a 6-3, 6-4 win.
Aryna Sabalenka is yet to drop a set in 2023 and could well be the one to watch out for heading into the second week of the Australian Open.
Roberto Bautista Agut def. Andy Murray
After memersing the Melbourne crowds with back-to-back five-set marathon wins, Andy Murray finally ran out of magic against the resilient Roberto Bautista Agut — bowing out of the tournament after a close four-set defeat.
The Brit looked set for another big battle when he took the second set in a tiebreaker after having dropped the opener. Bautista Agut, however, proved too steady in the end as he took the next two sets to progress into the second week.
Other Australian Open Day 6 results
Other big winners from the day included men's fifth seed Andrey Rublev, women's fourth seed Caroline Garcia. The likes of Magda Linette and Linda Fruhvirtova also moved through their first Grand Slam second week.
Men's singles results:
Andrey Rublev def. Dan Evans 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
Holger Rune def. Ugo Humber 6-4, 6-2, 7-6(5)
Alex de Minaur def. Benjamin Bonzi 7-6(0), 6-2, 6-1
Tommy Paul def. Jenson Brooksby 6-1, 6-4, 6-3
JJ Wolf def. Michael Mmoh 6-4, 6-1, 6-2
Ben Shelton def Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-4
Novak Djokovic def. Grigor Dimitrov 7-6(7), 6-3. 6-4
Roberto Buatista Agut def. Andy Murray 6-1, 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-4
Women's singles results:
Donna Vekic def. Nuria Parrizas Diaz 6-2, 6-2
Karolina Pliskova def. Varvara Gracheva 6-4, 6-2
Belinda Bencic def. Camila Giorgi 6-2, 7-5
Zhang Shuai def. Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-2
Linda Fruhvirtova def. Marketa Vondrousova 7-5, 2-6, 6-3
Aryna Sabalenka def. Elise Mertens 6-2, 6-3
Caroline Garcia def. Laura Seigemund 1-6, 6-3, 6-3
Magda Linette def. Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3, 6-4