Jannik Sinner continued his hot streak of form to race into the third round of the Australian Open for the third successive year with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 win over Dutch qualifier Jesper De Jong on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Italian fourth seed, favored by some as a potential champion at Melbourne Park after a stellar finish to last season, completely dominated the world No. 161 under the closed roof on Margaret Court Arena.
Sinner, who banged down seven aces and 26 winners, faced not a single break point over the entire contest while winning an impressive 45% of his return points.
There were sympathetic cheers from the crowd when De Jong finally got on the scoreboard in the final set, but Sinner was soon serving out to love to book a meeting with Daniel Elahi Galan or Sebastian Baez.
Following his win, Sinner joked that he dreams of beefing up and having a physique like that of the actors in the 1990s television series “Baywatch.”
“Tomorrow I have a day off, trying to practice myself into match rhythm. I also will go to the gym. Even if you can’t see it, I’m skinny … but it’s OK,” Sinner said.
Asked how much he weighed, the Italian quipped: “It’s a secret, guys. Of course it’s all muscle. Unfortunately not but it’s OK. I’m happy with my physicality at the moment. Of course it’s a dream to have the ‘Baywatch’ physique but it’s OK.”
In other men’s results, Alex De Minaur, the 10th-seeded Australian, defeated Matteo Arnaldi 6-3, 6-0, 6-3.
The 24-year-old from Sydney benefited from a retirement in the first round, and Australia’s recent Davis Cup final loss to Italy was on his mind during his win Wednesday.
“I thought I just had to be solid here, just use the crowd,” De Minaur said. “It’s no secret that it was heartbreaking to lose the Davis Cup final at the end of last year … today was a little bit of revenge for Australia.”
Defending champion Novak Djokovic headlines the night matches later Wednesday, three days after wrapping up the first-ever first Sunday at Melbourne Park.
Djokovic, a 10-time winner of the event, plays local hope Alexei Popyrin.