Fritz sinks Tsitsipas to reach first AO QF

Taylor Fritz reached the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time Sunday, overcoming World No. 7 Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 to earn his maiden Top 10 win at a major.

The American had lost all of his 11 previous meetings against Top 10 players at Slams, including a fourth-round defeat against Tsitsipas in Melbourne in 2022. However, the 26-year-old was close to his best inside John Cain Arena to end that run, firing 13 aces and winning 86 per cent (68/79) of his first-serve points to advance after three hours and one minute.

"I trusted my shots a lot. I served well the whole match," Fritz said. "It kept me in it as there were some games he was in that I could get out of with my serve. At the end when I really needed it, I turned it up a level and played some of my best tennis to finish it."

Fritz, who is making his eighth appearance at the Australian Open, will meet Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals. The 26-year-old has now advanced to the last eight at three of the four majors, having reached that stage at Wimbledon in 2022 and the US Open in 2023. The six-time tour-level titlist has never advanced to the semi-finals at a Slam.

With his fifth victory of the season, Fritz has improved to 2-3 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Tsitsipas, who reached the final in Melbourne last season. Fritz is also up one spot to No. 9 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, surpassing the Greek Tsitsipas.

Statement made ✅@Taylor_Fritz97 is quarter-final bound in Melbourne for the first time! 👏@AustralianOpen | #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/9nks3zagSP

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 21, 2024

Fritz struck 50 winners and committed just 19 unforced errors, while Tsitsipas held a 41/33 mark. The American now holds a 14-7 record at the AO, having earned more wins at the first major of the season than any of the other three.

Tsitsipas has lost his past five matches against Top 20 players. If Alex de Minaur defeats Andrey Rublev on Sunday evening, Tsitsipas will fall to No. 11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. The last time the Greek was outside the Top 10 was February 2019.