On January 13, 2025, in the first round of the Australian Open, No. 11 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas lost 1-3 to Mikael Ymer, becoming the highest-seeded player to exit the tournament so far. Following the elimination of No. 29 seed Marketa Vondrousova yesterday, Tsitsipas became the second seeded player to be knocked out. Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka faced Bronzetti in the first round, losing the first set 2-6 to Azarenka, which could lead to an upset.
Tsitsipas is the No. 11 seed at the tournament and currently ranked No. 12 in the world, holding 11 tour titles as the runner-up at the Australian Open and French Open. Ymer is currently ranked No. 42 in the world and has won three ATP250 runner-up titles but has yet to break his championship drought. The two have only met once before, with Ymer winning at the 2024 Tokyo 500 event.
In the first set, both players held serve for the first 10 games, reaching a 5-5 tie. Then, Ymer held serve and broke Tsitsipas' serve to win the set 7-5. In the second set, after the first six games were tied at 3-3, Ymer took advantage of the momentum, holding serve, breaking Tsitsipas' serve, and then holding serve again to win the set 6-3, leading by a score of 2-0. In the third set, Tsitsipas fought back with a 6-2 victory, making the score 1-2. In the fourth set, Ymer came back from a 0-2 deficit to level the score at 4-4, eventually winning the set 6-4, defeating Tsitsipas 3-1 and advancing to the next round.
Azarenka, the No. 21 seed and Australian Open champion, is currently ranked No. 24 in the world. In the first round, she faced Bronzetti, who is ranked No. 76 in the world. In the first set, Bronzetti established a 5-0 lead with a series of holds and breaks. Azarenka then held serve and broke Bronzetti's serve to win two games, making the score 2-5. In the eighth game, Bronzetti broke serve to convert the set point, winning the set 6-2 and leading Azarenka by a score of 1-0.