It didn’t take long for Jannik Sinner to book his place in the second round.
Two-time defending champion Sinner defeated Hugo Gaston, 6-2, 6-1 (RET), in the first round of the Australian Open.
Sinner’s opponent, Gaston, suddenly retired before the third set.
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During his post-match analysis, Tim Henman shared his theory as to why Gaston retired.
If Henman’s theory is correct, Gaston may well be the first of many withdrawals Down Under…
Tim Henman wonders if a ‘bug’ is spreading at the Australian Open
Speaking on TNT Sports, Henman gave his verdict on Gaston’s retirement.
“We did see the trainer and the doctor come on the court, and they gave Gaston some pills that he swallowed,” he said.
“Just at the end, as he said to Jannik Sinner that he couldn’t continue, I thought he made some sort of gesture to his stomach, so I don’t know whether he was not feeling his best.
“Obviously, we refer to [Flavio] Cobolli, who wasn’t feeling well against Arthur Fery.
“So I don’t know if there’s a little bit of a bug going around.
“It was unexpected.”
If Henman is right, and a bug is spreading at the Australian Open, then tournament organisers have every reason to be concerned.
Especially considering how 100s of players and coaches are brushing shoulders around the grounds.
One or two players catching a bug and missing out on a shot at Australian Open glory is bad enough, but if those numbers continue to rise, then there’s a real problem.
Just last year, the Mexican Open was ravaged by illness.
Three pre-tournament favorites either withdrew from or retired from a match.
- Holger Rune
- Casper Ruud
- Tommy Paul
Imagine if the same were to happen in Australia.
Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Novak Djokovic withdrawing with an illness would throw the tournament into disarray.
An asterisk would forever follow the winner of the event if that happened.
That is, of course, the worst-case scenario, but Cobolli and Gaston aren’t the only players to have struggled.
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Felix Auger-Aliassime retired from his opening match, and Andy Roddick thinks he, too, may be suffering from an illness.
For now, Craig Tiley and the rest of the Australian Open team will just have to cross their fingers and hope nobody else catches the bug.
‘Absolutely magnificent’ Jannik Sinner begins Australian Open title defence
While Gaston’s ‘bug’ brought a premature end to the match, Henman didn’t believe it changed the result.
“I don’t necessarily think it altered the outcome of that match,” he said.
“Sinner was just absolutely magnificent with his ball striking.
“Gaston had those three break points in the first game at 0-40; it might have given the first set a different complexion if he had broken serve.
Jannik Sinner vs Hugo Gaston – Match stats
| Player | Aces | Double faults | 1st Serve % | Win % on 1st Serve | Win % on 2nd Serve | Break points |
| Jannik Sinner | 6 | 0 | 64% | 86% | 50% | 4/7 |
| Hugo Gaston | 0 | 0 | 49% | 61% | 33% | 0/3 |
“But it was always going to be an uphill battle for Hugo Gaston.”
The chances are that it will be an ‘uphill battle’ for anyone who plays Sinner at this year’s Australian Open.
He last lost a match in Melbourne, 1,094 days ago, and has won two titles since then.
Looking to end Sinner’s streak is the home favorite, James Duckworth, who won his opening match to set up a second-round tie with the Italian.
Duckworth did beat Sinner at the 2021 Canadian Open, but trails their head-to-head 1-2.
It remains to be seen if he can produce a historic Australian Open upset when they meet for a fourth time.
Sinner will play Duckworth in the second round of the 2026 Australian Open on Thursday, January 22.
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