Australian Open Fourth Round Previews: Coco Gauff vs. Belinda Bencic, Sabalenka vs. Andreeva, Alcaraz vs. Draper

Coco Gauff vs. Belinda Bencic

Bencic has only played Gauff twice, but she saw a fair amount of her over the past year, while she was away having a baby.

“I was able to watch her a little bit when I was just lying on the couch for the last nine months,” Bencic laughed on Thursday.

Given Gauff’s wild swings in form during that time, she might not known exactly what to think of her. But the American’s level is high right now, which will obviously be a challenge for someone who is just returning to the tour. Bencic may feel lucky to be here at all. She was down 5-3 to Naomi Osaka in her last match, when the two-time champion re-injured an abdominal muscle and had to retire.

I was able to watch her a little bit when I was just lying on the couch for the last nine months. Belinda Bencic on Coco Gauff

Gauge and Bencic have split their two previous matches: Bencic won in three sets on hard courts in Adelaide in 2021; Gauff returned the favor in two sets, again on hard courts, in D.C. in 2023.

Style-wise, this is an intriguing matchup. Both are sneaky tall at 5’9”, but both are counterpunchers by nature, with serves that can go on and off. Both love their two-handed backhands.

Bencic has shown over the years that she has the talent to beat anyone. But Gauff arriving in peak form, and Bencic “lying on the couch for nine months,” has to count for something. Winner: Gauff

Aryna Sabalenka vs. Mirra Andreeva

After playing Andreeva earlier this month in Brisbane, Sabalenka was asked if she had any advice for her 17-year-old opponent. She joked that she would wait “until after I retire” to give her any tips. The Russian teen is doing just fine on her own. Maybe a little too good.

The top seed is probably happy with her decision, because now she has to go up against Andreeva again, in a much bigger event. The last time these two played at a Slam, at Roland Garros in 2024, Andreeva pulled off an upset in three close sets.

Sabalenka may be happy to know that Andreeva isn’t looking forward to another meeting between the two. She sounds kinda over it.

“Honestly, I’m so tired to play against her,” Andreeva moaned. “I played her four or five times already. So, yeah, it’s a lot. So what can I say? Here we are again.”

For Andreeva, the tough thing about playing the No. 1 player in the world is that it’s easy to make excuses for herself.

“Sometimes there are thoughts that are, you know, I feel like, OK, she’s No. 1, maybe it’s OK if this doesn’t work. Or maybe I play not that good here…well, I mean, she’s No. 1, it’s OK.”

It’s hard to say whether Andreeva should feel more encouraged about her chances this time around. While she has won three matches, she had to make a great escape, from 3-5 down in the third, against Moyuka Uchijima, and she dropped another set against Magdalena Frech.

As for Sabalenka, she has yet to lose a set, but her last two opponents, Clara Tauson and Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, each pushed her to a point where she got tight. They showed that if you can take the initiative away from Sabalenka, and stand toe to toe with her, you can make her nervous and disrupt her attack.

Andreeva has the ground-stroke power to do that, but she’ll want to be sharper earlier than she has been so far this week, especially on these fairly fast hard courts. If she can land some punches early, the Sabalenka onslaught could be neutralized. Winner: Sabalenka

Carlos Alcaraz vs. Jack Draper

“I’m expecting to be really sore,” Draper said when he was asked for his thoughts on this match.

That seems like a fair bet. All three of the Brit’s previous contests this week have gone five sets. The last one, against Aleksander Vukic, went the absolute distance, 10-8 in the fifth, and finished after midnight.

Can Draper possibly be ready to face the barrage of Alcaraz, who has played five fewer sets than he has? Draper seems to know what he has to do to make it competitive.

First, he says he hopes the match is scheduled for late in the day. Then he says he needs to “eat a lot” on his day off and “not think about the tennis at all.” Then, when he gets on court, he needs to be “brave.”

“I need to take my chances,” Draper says.” Against the top players you get less and less chances to win games and sets.”

He also believes that, mentally, having survived three five-setters could help. He knows he can mount a comeback, and that matches have ebbs and flows.

Draper has a game that’s a little different from most, and that could trouble Alcaraz on a fast court. He beat him last summer on grass at Queen’s, and the combination of his lefty serve and ability to move up in the court could rob Alcaraz of some of the time he needs to set up for his bolo-punch ground strokes.

Still, ranking-wise, talent-wise, and fitness-wise, the advantage lies with Alcaraz. Winner: Alcaraz