The action Down Under continues later this week, as the second round matches in the Australian Open are played. There are interesting matches in both men’s and women’s draws of the competition, and you can find our Australian Open picks here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A standout second round tie pits Italian star Matteo Berrettini against Norwegian player Holger Rune. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Berrettini produced a strong effort in the opening round to come back from a set down to beat British star Cameron Norrie, and his pedigree at the Australian Open is clear to see. Before injury issues, the Italian reached the semi-final stage in 2022, and he boasts a 64% win rate at the Grand Slam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rune avoided a scare in the opening round, and there could be value in taking him on in the second round. Rune has only progressed further than the second round in one from three appearances at the Grand Slam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
Daniil Medvedev has been a very consistent performer at the Australian Open, reaching the final in three of the last four editions. The Russian has a win rate of 77% at the Grand Slam. However, he needed to overcome a huge scare in the opening round, needing all five sets to get past unseeded Kasidit Samrej.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
American teenager Leaner Tien reached the final at the Junior Australian Open in 2023, but he is making his first appearance at the tournament proper this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tien has performed excellently to reach this stage, winning three qualifiers before overcoming Camilo Ugo in a five-set thriller in the first round. However, his best career Grand Slam appearance to date looks set to come to an end against the fifth-seed on Thursday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
Destanee Aiava will have a passionate home crowd behind her on the Show Court Arena in the early hours of Thursday morning. The Australian has battled to this stage of the competition, overcoming three qualifying rounds before beating Greet Minnen after three long sets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
American star Danielle Collins looks to be the smart choice when making Australian Open picks today. Collins was a finalist at the Grand Slam in 2022, and boasts her best win rate of any major at the Australian Open. She is highly expected to come through this challenge in straight sets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
Madison Keys overcame a huge challenge against compatriot Ann Li in the opening round, eventually overcoming her young challenger in straight sets. Keys was dominant on the first sere, winning 74% of the points. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
She has often saved her best performances in Grand Slam events for the Australian Open, reaching at least the quarterfinal stage in three events since 2015. In fact, she hasn’t exited the tournament in the second round since 2014. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elena-Gabriela Ruse needed to qualify for the Grand Slam last week, but she stripped much fitter than her rival in the opening round, winning against Irina Begu in straight sets. However, she has already equaled her best appearance at the Australian Open, meaning that the preference is for the American on Thursday. <\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The action Down Under continues later this week, as the second round matches in the Australian Open are played. There are interesting matches in both men’s and women’s draws of the competition, and you can find our Australian Open picks here. Australian Open Picks Matteo Berrettini vs. Holger Rune A standout second round tie pits […]","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":29519,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[466],"tags":[3427],"class_list":["post-29515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tennis","tag-australian-open-tennis"],"yoast_head":"\n