Not even world No. 128 Eva Lys expected that she'd reach the second week of Australian Open 2025.
MORE: All the scores from Day 7 at AO 2025
After losing in the third and final round of qualifying nine days ago, the German 23-year-old signed in at Melbourne Park on Sunday and Monday, taking naps to kill time as she waited out a 14-hour day to learn if she'd sneak into the main draw as a lucky loser.
Then on Tuesday, while receiving treatment on a physio table, the lean right-hander received a call she’ll never forget: Anna Kalinskaya had withdrawn, and she’d take the 13th seed’s place in the next scheduled match on Kia Arena. Checking scores, Lys realised Matteo Berrettini was already leading 5-3 in the fourth, one game away from victory.
Without time to warm-up or to process nerves that are usually attached to the first round of a Grand Slam, Lys rushed to the locker room, donned her match kit and took to the court. There, she secured her first AO main draw win, conquering homegrown qualifier Kimberly Birrell 6-2 6-2.
By following that up with a three-set second-round victory over Varvara Gracheva, Lys set up a third-round showdown against Jacqueline Cristian, whom she’d defeated in all three of their prior encounters.
MORE: AO 2025 women's singles draw
On Saturday, Lys struck 34 winners during her 4-6 6-3 6-3 win over the Romanian, and became the first women’s singles lucky loser to reach the final 16 since the AO relocated to Melbourne Park in 1988.
There’s a surreal feel to her historic run.
“Definitely doesn't feel real for me right now, I don't know when the realisation will kick in,” said Lys, who at 165cm is among the most diminutive players remaining in the AO 2025 draw.
“It's definitely just an amazing situation to be in, especially knowing that I was [a] lucky loser.”
“It's definitely an insane story … how fast it happened, it's been just a couple of days. Those days have totally changed my life.
“I’m very, very happy to be making it to [the] second week, I feel like second week was always such a dream for me.”
The welcome breakthrough guarantees she’ll crack the world’s top 100 for the first time.
“At the end of the day, I know I have the level, but I was always putting too much pressure on myself,” Lys admitted. “I always knew what's at stake, I always wanted it so bad – that was also the reason why I could never actually go out and win.”
Lys recalled, with brutal honesty, overthinking during her AO main draw debut in Melbourne two years ago.
“I played so well [in the] first set, [then in the] second set I had that realisation where I knew how many points I would make, I knew what my ranking position would be. What do you think? I lost the second set 6-0. Sometimes my head is just way further than my game and my physical self,” said the German, who lost that match 2-6 6-0 6-2 to Cristina Bucsa.
“The more I think, the worse I play,” said Lys, who also lost in the final round of AO 2024 qualifying.
“I'm just trying to go out and enjoy. I feel like my lucky loser position definitely helps me – sometimes you just need a second chance.”
On Monday, Lys will face her biggest test of the fortnight: second seed Iga Swiatek, now a five-time Grand Slam champion, who routed the German 6-1 6-1 in their only prior match in 2022.
In other women’s singles action on Super Saturday, sixth seed Elena Rybakina converted her seventh match point to advance past 32nd seed Dayana Yastremska, 6-3 6-4.
The Kazakh acknowledged that she employed aggressive and, at times, risky tennis to avoid getting stuck in long rallies after becoming encumbered by a lower back issue during the match, for which she received treatment.
Elsewhere, eighth seed Emma Navarro sealed her maiden AO fourth round appearance by navigating past Ons Jabeur 6-4 3-6 6-4 in her third three-set match this week.
“I love three sets,” smiled the American, explaining that endurance was forced upon her at a young age by her father, who’d drag his four children on arduous and lengthy hikes and bike rides.
“We made up a term ‘biking and crying’ because we’d be six hours in, we’d all have tears in our eyes and just [be] exhausted trying to pedal up a hill,” she reminisced on Saturday. “I learned a lot of toughness growing up, and that’s a lot thanks to him.”
“I work really hard on my fitness, on my ability to go the distance and stick in there for as long as it takes.”
Also earning first-time appearances in the AO round of 16 were ninth seed Daria Kasatkina, who brushed past 24th seed Yulia Putintseva 7-5 6-1 and Veronika Kudermetova, who upset 15th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-4 6-2.
In night action, fourth seed Jasmine Paolini was bounced by 28th seed Elina Svitolina.
The Ukrainian staged a 2-6 6-4 6-0 comeback at Margaret Court Arena, the same court where her husband Gael Monfils had earlier caused an upset of his own by defeating fourth seed Taylor Fritz.
"It was a crazy battle today," said the 30-year-old, who won 83 per cent of first serve points and admitted that she was inspired by Monfils, who posted a similar statistic.
Svitolina, who joked that the victory was a birthday present to her coach Andrew Bettles, attributed her success to her Ukrainian heritage.
"Fighting spirit is in our blood, and we just try to do our best every single day."
In Saturday’s final women’s singles match-up, American Madison Keys advanced to a fourth-round meeting with Rybakina on Monday, the 19th seed beating 10th-seeded compatriot Danielle Collins 6-4 6-4 at Rod Laver Arena.