Carlos Alcaraz’s Australian Open campaign in 2024 continues with a clash against Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in the second round. The 20-year-old Spaniard recorded a straight sets victory over Richard Gasquet in round one, easing past the Frenchman 7-6 6-2 6-3.
28-year-old Sonego required four sets to beat Britain’s Dan Evans in the first round, losing the first before coming back to win the next three on the bounce to reach the next stage of the competition, albeit via two match points.
The pair have met once before, at the 2021 Cincinnati Masters tournament, where Sonego defeated the then-ATP Tour debutant Alcaraz with a 6-3 7-6 straight-sets victory. Alcaraz’s rise since has been meteoric, however, and the two-time grand slam winner comes into this match as one of the favourites to win this year’s Australian Open, second only to 10-time champion Novak Djokovic.
Alcaraz and Sonego will face off mid-way through the day session on Thursday, January 18, 2024, with the first serve to take place around 1:30 p.m. local time (AEDT).
The match will take place after the clash between women’s world number one Iga Swiatek and Danielle Collins of the US.
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Here’s how to watch this match across selected areas of the world’s major regions:
USA: Both Fubo and ESPN+ are streaming the match live, and US fans can also tune into ESPN and the Tennis Channel to watch on TV.
Canada: RDS and TSN are showing the action live, as well as streaming on TSN Direct.
UK: Eurosport will offer live broadcast coverage of the match, with viewers also able to stream the action via discovery+.
Australia: Channel Nine’s Wide World of Sports are broadcasting the match live, with Stan Sport doing likewise on their streaming service
Given the ease at which he defeated a veteran of the Australian Open in Richard Gasquet last time out, it’s hard to see anything other than a victory for Alcaraz in this clash. The Spaniard lost in the second round on his tournament debut back in 2021, but he’s built up one hell of a resume since that suggests defeating Sonego should be a formality.
Sonego’s best result at the Australian Open was a third-round exit in 2022, and after being pushed all the way by Dan Evans in his first game, the proven class of Alcaraz will likely be a step too far for the Italian at Melbourne Park.
Prediction: Alcaraz to win in straight sets