Men’s 18th seed Francisco Cerundolo opened his AO 2026 account on Sunday with a solid 6-3 7-6(0) 6-3 win over Zhizhen Zhang at Margaret Court Arena.
MORE: All the scores from Day 1 at AO 2026
Winning 80 per cent of first serves and hitting 38 winners, the Argentinian also showed great net craft and employed the drop shot effectively as Zhang struggled to find his rhythm.
Despite Zhang having a minor resurgence towards the end of the second set, Cerundolo played a perfect tiebreak and held his Chinese opponent at bay throughout.
Evaluating his performance, Cerundolo was happy overall, but pointed to one area of his game he could’ve improved upon.
“I think I did a pretty good match since the beginning to the end. I did a lot of good things in my service games, I returned pretty well,” he said.
“I probably should have gone more to the net. I realised later in the game that I hit some really good shots that could’ve ended up as a volley. But I think I played well, overall.”
Maintaining his record of always reaching the second round at the Australian Open since his main draw debut in 2023, Cerundolo said he enjoys the conditions at Melbourne Park, likening the weather to his home country of Argentina.
“To be honest I always felt really good in this tournament,” he said.
“I really like the conditions, the balls the court. Compared with the US Open, I don’t know why but I prefer it here than there.
MORE: AO 2026 men's singles draw
“I don’t know if they [the conditions] suit it [my game]. I’m used to the hot weather because I’m from Argentina. We did the pre-season there and it’s quite similar to here. So if that suits my game, I don’t know, but I don’t feel bad playing in hot weather.”
Cerundolo will next play Damir Dzumhur from Bosnia and Herzegovina, who defeated Canadian qualifier Liam Draxl in straight sets.
In the first major upset of the day, British qualifier Arthur Fery advanced to the second round after defeating 20th seed Flavio Cobolli 7-6 (1) 6-4 6-1 at John Cain Arena.
It is just Fery’s third ATP tour-level match win, after wins against Alexei Popyrin – like Cobolli, the 20th seed when they met at Wimbledon in 2025 – and Olaf Pieczkowski at the Davis Cup in the same year.
“It seems like I like drawing 20th seeds in main draws at Slams,” Fery said.
“I would’ve much rather drawn someone not as good as him, but it was great to play on a big court and I love playing on big stages.”
Cobolli struggled physically throughout the match, and Fery took full advantage. Despite being ranked 163 places lower than his Italian opponent, Fery looked at home and in control.
Later in the day, there was a second upset from a qualifier when Michael Zheng took out fellow American Sebastian Korda in a thrilling contest at Kia Arena that went the distance, finishing 6-4 6-4 3-6 6-7(0) 6-3.
Korda struggled with his footwork early on, making plenty of errors against an opponent who was far too disciplined and consistent.
Korda, an AO 2023 quarterfinalist, rallied to turn the match around by forcing Zheng around the court with his aggressive and pinpoint groundstrokes, playing the perfect tiebreak to level the match at two sets apiece.
In the fifth set, Zheng went back to holding the baseline and was rewarded with a break in the seventh game, the 21-year-old American keeping his nerve to serve out the match.
“It definitely wasn’t easy out here, but thanks to the fans for the packed stadium out here,” he said to a vocal crowd.
Zheng will play crafty Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the second round, Moutet defeating Australia’s Tristan Schoolkate 6-4 7-6(1) 6-3 despite a late injury scare.
Frances Tiafoe continued his perfect record over Australia’s Jason Kubler, winning in straight sets 7-6(4) 6-3 6-2.
After a tight first set where Tiafoe was pushed to the limit, the American got better as the match wore on, firing down 23 aces and 53 winners.
The 29th seed was full of praise for Kubler’s game after the match.
“Jason is a good player. Obviously injuries have hindered him quite a lot but his ability is great. He moves very well, really good backhand and he’s got a great service rhythm,” he said.
The American will next play Argentine Francisco Comesana, who defeated American wildcard Patrick Kypson 6-2 6-2 3-6 6-3.