Australian Open 2026: Wins and losses split evenly for Argentines at the first round

It was a solid start for Argentine tennis stars in the 2026 Australian Open, with eight out of the nine players in the singles’ draws having already played, and four still in the running. Action on Monday left just a single winner, as Thiago Tirante (103 ATP singles ranked) ran past home hero Aleksandar Vukic (78) by 7-5, 6-2, and 6-2 in one hour and 50 minutes of play at the ANZ Arena. The 24-year-old from La Plata, who was the last-ranked player to access the draw directly, achieved his first ever win in the Australian Open main draw, and his second win in a Grand Slam singles’ draw, with his first coming at the 2023 French Open. He’s got little time to celebrate, however, as he’s set to match up against U.S. player Tommy Paul (20) in the second round, on Tuesday. That was the only positive news for Argentine tennis on Monday. Mariano Navone (74) battled for three hours with Serbian Hamad Medjedovic, losing 2-6, 7-6 (3), 4-6, 2-6. Meanwhile, Juan Manuel Cerúndolo took an early lead, but was unable to hold it against Australian Jordan Thompson and lost 7-6 (3), 5-7, 1-6, and 1-6. Argentina was left without representatives in the women’s singles draw after Solana Sierra (63) lost to Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima 3-6, 1-6. Uchijima looked like an accessible rival for what was to be Sierra’s debut in the main draw of the Australian Open, however she fell in just over an hour, struggling with her serve and unable to get the Japanese player out of her comfort zone. The only Argentine in the singles draws who is yet to play is Sebastian Báez, who’ll face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on Monday, 10:30 pm Argentina time. Positive balance for Sunday Sunday proved a much more positive day for Argentine players. The first to set foot on the court was Tomás Etcheverry (61) who had to battle for nearly four hours to claim his spot in the second round, Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic (59) 6-2, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Etcheverry started off dominating the match, but it became a mentally and physically draining affair, as Kecmanovic reacted in time to take a 2-1 lead going into the fourth set. In the fifth, Etcheverry’s patience and shot-making paid off to secure his ticket to advance in the tournament. “I thought I was managing the match well and then all of a sudden I was 2-1 down,” the player from La Plata told the press after the match. “I’m proud of having been able to turn it around, because he’s a great player and a very competitive rival.” He also highlighted the support of Argentine fans in Australia, saying he “got hooked” with them when the match started to go uphill. “I needed extra energy and found it there,” Etcheverry said. “In Australia, you can always feel the intensity of Argentine fans.” On Tuesday, he’ll face Brit Arthur Fery (185) who shocked Italian Flavio Cobolli (22) after coming through the qualifiers.  Francisco Cerúndolo (20), Argentina’s top ranked player, debuted with a solid 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 victory against China’s Zhizhen Zhang (368). He got a poor reward for his efforts, setting up a matchup against a tough rival like Bosnian Damir Dzumhur (66) in the second round. The last of the Argentines to move through to the second round on Sunday was Francisco Comesaña (68), who defeated U.S. player Patrick Kypson 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, and 6-3. It was a first win in the Australian Open main draw for the 25-year-old, who will face another U.S. native, Frances Tiafoe (34) on Tuesday. Camilo Ugo Carabelli was the first Argentine to be eliminated from the singles draw after losing to Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics 6-7 (5), 1-6, and 2-6.