Three must-see fourth round women's Australian Open matches

With the upset of World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, defending Australian Open Champion and World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka's chances of repeating as the 2024 Australian Open Champion have increased. She is featured in one of three must-see fourth round matches on the women's side of the draw.

First up at 8:00 PM EST in Rod Laver Arena is World No. 4 Coco Gauff taking on Magdalena Frech who defeated 16th-ranked Caroline Garcia in the second round. Gauff has been breezing through her matches. Will this be her first real test? At approximately 9:00 PM EST, Sabalenka takes the court in Margaret Court Arena against American Amanda Anisimova who leads the head-to-head record against Sabalenka 4-1.

The last match, at approximately 11:30 PM EST in John Cain Arena features 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva against 2021 French Open Champion and World No. 9 Barbora Krejcikova. Andreeva has already taken out a Top 10 player at this event in the second round, World No. 6 Ons Jabeur. Krejcikova, best known for her doubles success, is still alive in the doubles draw with new partner Laura Siegemund.

Fourth-round match predictions for Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Amanda Anisimova, and Mirra Andreeva

Coco Gauff will defeat Frech in straight sets. The fact that she is not playing doubles (Jessica Pegula and she withdrew after Pegula's singles loss) makes her fresher and more formidable in the later rounds. She will eventually get tested at this tournament, but Frech will not be the player to do it.

Aryna Sabalenka will avenge some of her previous losses against Amanda Anisimova with a three-set win. Sabalenka will be tested, and if her hard-hitting game becomes error-prone, Anisimova can win this match. The reasons I am not taking Anisimova is that she is very early in her comeback, and this is her toughest test to date. It is hard to pick against the defending champion when she is bulldozing through the draw.

Mirra Andreeva's quest for Grand Slam glory will continue with a three-set win over Krejcikova. Her run in this tournament has been extraordinary and will continue.

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