The young stars of this year’s Australian Open have impressed throughout, providing some real hope for the future of tennis.
The 20-year-old American is one of the youngest players left in the 2025 Australian Open, having played some excellent tennis during the first three rounds.
Alex Michelsen beat Karen Khachanov in the third round, 6-3, 7-6, 6-2, as he booked his place in the last 16 of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
Khachanov was the second-seeded scalp the world number 42 had collected this tournament, as Michelsen beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round.
He’s not the only youngster to have impressed at the Australian Open, however, as both Joao Fonseca and Learner Tien have made waves during the early rounds.
Tien beat Daniil Medvedev in the second round, before taking down Courentin Moutet in the third, and is now the youngest player left in the men’s singles draw.
Brazilian 18-year-old Fonseca knocked out Andrey Rublev in the first round, as he got the tennis world talking with a huge upset on Margaret Court Arena.
With the young stars of the ATP Tour impressing, Michelsen has now revealed the area where he falls behind compared to Tien and Fonseca.
Alex Michelsen says Joao Fonseca and Learner Tien are both ‘better ball strikers’ than him
Speaking after his third-round win, Michelsen was full of praise for his young rivals.
“Yeah, I mean, you look at [Jakub] Mensik and [Joao] Fonseca and Learner [Tien], they can all hit the absolute crap out of the ball,” he said.
“So I feel like they’re all naturally better ball strikers than I am, but we’re all playing pretty big.
“I feel like that’s what you have to do to beat the big guys, you have to have a big game nowadays.
“The game is very quick.”
After his defeat to Michelsen, Tsitsipas claimed tennis had changed over recent years, becoming far more ‘physical’.
The American number seven now agrees with the Greek, despite having spent just one full year on the tour.
“I heard Stef [Tsitsipas] say he thought the game got quicker,” he said.
“I don’t really know because I haven’t been on tour for that long, but I believe him just because everyone is hitting huge now, it feels like.
“Yeah, I mean, we’re all trying to take it to these guys, I feel like.
“Got to hit hard to do that.”
Which American player will make it the furthest at the 2025 Australian Open?
As we head into the fourth round of the Australian Open, a quarter of the players remaining in the men’s singles draw are American.
- Alex Michelsen v [8] Alex de Minaur
- [21] Ben Shelton v Gael Monfils
- [Q] Learner Tien v Lorenzo Sonego
- [12] Tommy Paul v Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
There’s a fair argument to suggest that Michelsen has the toughest draw, playing top-ten seed, and home favorite Alex de Minaur in the fourth round.
Should he make it through, a match-up with world number one Jannik Sinner would likely follow, an even trickier test for the young American.
On the other hand, Ben Shelton and Tien could set up an all-American quarter-final, should they advance against Gael Monfils and Lorenzo Sonego.
Tommy Paul is another American on the charge, as he looks to return to the Australian Open semi-finals, having done so back in 2023.
On that occasion, he lost in three sets to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, having beaten Shelton in the quarter-finals.
Only time will tell which American will make it furthest at this year’s Australian Open, but they’ll no doubt all be hoping to take advantage of what is a surprisingly open draw.
The men’s fourth-round matches will take place on Sunday, January 19, and Monday, January 20.
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