The first round of the Australian Open was always going to be difficult for Hugo Gaston. The ATP No. 93 is a fine player, but nowhere near the form of Jannik Sinner. Unfortunately for Gaston, he was facing the ATP No. 2 to open the event in Melbourne.
Even more unfortunate for Gaston was that he suffered an injury in the first set after a fall. He wasn't going to be able to beat the Italian with a bad wrist, though he did try to continue playing. He even won a game in the second set while hurt. Ultimately, Sinner won 6-2 6-1.
Gaston was forced to retire at the beginning of the third set, as continuing to play was going to be rather pointless. He was unlikely to beat Sinner to begin with, but with an injured wrist and only winning three games while dropping the first two sets, he had no chance.
Jannik Sinner wins first-round match at the Australian Open after Hugo Gaston is forced to retire
Still, no player wants to defeat another, partly because the other player is hurt. Sinner said as much after the match, too. Matters were made worse as Gaston broke down in tears on his bench. He had every right to do so as well. Playing in a Grand Slam is a fantastic opportunity, of course, and so is playing one of the best players in the world. To get hurt while doing so is unbelievably frustrating.
Sinner addressed the issue in an on-court post-match interview, saying, "I saw that he wasn’t serving with high pace, especially in the second set. It’s not the way you want to win. He’s such a talented player with incredible touch. I knew from the beginning I had to play a very high level and be as aggressive as possible."
The Italian said it perfectly when he said no player wants to win a match after the other is forced to retire. Sinner was on the other side of the same kind of situation when he retired against Carlos Alcaraz while trailing 0-5 in the first set of the 2025 Cincinnati Open. He could sympathize with what Hugo Gaston was going through.
With the victory, Jannik Sinner will next play James Duckworth in the second round. The crowd will likely be firmly behind native son Duckworth, though. As for the Italian, he has now won 15 straight matches at the Australian Open and is looking to win his third straight title in Melbourne.