Australian Open 2025 Recaps Day 2: Tommy Paul and Naomi Osaka survive

Naomi Osaka might finally be rounding into the kind of form that pushed her to be No. 1 on the WTA tour as well as win Grand Slams. She is not there yet, and maybe she never will be, but she certainly is consistently playing better than she did when she embarked on her comeback in 2024. Plus, her first-round opponent at the 2025 Australian Open was no joke.

Osaka faced Caroline Garcia, a proven veteran who has the power and intensity to surprise any player. And she almost did Osaka. The Japanese player took the first set 6-3, lost the second by the same score, and then took the third set 6-3 to move into the second round. Garcia helped her a bit at the end, as her serve was poor, and she could not control the final game.

Things get no easier for Osaka in the next round, however. She will play 20-seed Karolina Muchova who lost just two games in her first match in Melbourne.

Tommy Paul and Naomi Osaka survive at the Australian Open, but Stefanos Tsitsipas does not

American Tommy Paul is also through to the next round after surviving feisty Christopher O'Connell in five sets, taking the final set 7-5. To be fair, O'Connell seemed to be buoyed by playing in front of his home nation crowd. Both players played exceptionally well, however, and both deserved to win. Paul being tested at such a high level might help his chances further into the tournament.

He will face another player who got through the first round in five sets, Kei Nishikori. The Japanese player has had a bit of a late-career resurgence and made the final in Hong Kong to begin the year.

One seeded player who will not be moving on is Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Greek has struggled for most of the last six months and could not find a way past 20-year-old American Alex Michelsen. The Greek player hurt himself as much as the American did and let his emotions get the better of him. Twice, Tsitsipas smashed his racket in anger.

Once a staple in the top ten on the ATP tour, Tsitsipas is playing like he barely belongs in the top 30. His first-round exit in Melbourne matched his exit at the US Open, and he only made it to the second round at Wimbledon.

Michelsen should be expected to win his next match, too. He will play Australian James McCabe.

Novak Djokovic also won his first-round match, though he did drop the first set. Maybe he was still shaking off a bit of rust, though he did play in the Brisbane International at the beginning of the year. He will next play 21-year-old Jaime Faria.

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