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The defending Australian Open champions, Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic competed at Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday night. Aryna stepped on the court first and scored a dominant 6-3, 6-2 triumph over 16-year-old Brenda Fruhvirtova.
Sabalenka sealed the deal in 67 minutes, allowing Djokovic to start his match at a reasonable time and avoid staying on the court until late hours. Novak wrapped up his duties a few minutes before midnight, ousting Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 4-6, 7-6, 6-3 after a massive battle, moving into the third round.
The match could have been completed on Thursday. The Serb defended four set points in the third set and sealed the deal with a fine performance in the fourth, preserving energy after not feeling at his best physically. Sabalenka left a teenager far behind with a reliable performance on serve and return.
They both struggled to find the first serve, and the Belarusian drew more from that scenario. Aryna dropped five points behind the first serve, facing only two break points and getting broken once. Brenda could not match that pace, giving away 44% of the points behind the initial shot and suffering four breaks from six chances offered to world no.
2. Sabalenka used her powerful game to impose…
