Australian Open 2026: Báez out, just two Argentines left in the competition

The hot streak is over for Argentine world no. 36 tennis player Sebastián Báez at the 2026 Australian Open. The 25-year-old fell by 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 to Argentine-born Italian Luciano Darderi after just under two and a half hours of play.  That means Francisco Cerúndolo (20) and Tomás Etcheverry (61) are the only remaining Argentine players in the men’s singles draw It was an up-and-down, unpredictable match for Báez and Darderi. The Argentine started off on the right foot, breaking his rival’s service in the opening game and taking a 2-0 lead, but then conceded five straight games with service problems, as the Italian went on to seal the first set. Another great start saw Baéz take the lead early in the second set. He was able to keep the advantage this time, breaking Darderi’s serve twice for a 5-0 lead and eventually equalizing the set count at 1-1. However, coming from a three-hour grind against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round, Báez visibly felt the Melbourne heat. He started the third set on the back foot, allowing Darderi to take the lead.  When the Italian served to wrap up the set at 5-3, Báez broke him and looked to tie the set 5-5, but problems with his serve, which was his Achilles heel throughout the match, saw him concede and allow Darderi to take it, by 6-4. The fourth set was more of the same, with a visibly more settled Darderi sealing the match without issue. It puts an end to a very solid start to the year for Báez, who wrapped 2025 with a 17-24 record, but had surged to an 8-1 record and made it to the final in Auckland in 2026 before this loss. It’s not the last we’ve heard of Argentine tennis stars in the 2026 Australian Open, as Cerúndolo and Etcheverry will feature in the third round, going up against Andrey Rublev (15) and Alexander Bublik (10) respectively.