Day 4, and the Melbourne weather played a part again, with rain intermittent throughout.
However, there were results, and there were press conferences to listen in on.
The biggest upset was the women’s fifth-seed, Qinwen Zheng, going down to Laura Siegemund.
Zheng was unhappy, as expected, but quite forthright afterwards.
"Well, I have lot of chance to break her in the first set, but in that moment, maybe my concentration is not there. Always I give a easy mistake in that moment," she said.
"I felt she's playing really good today. Yeah, it's tennis. Nothing more."
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For her part, 36-year-old Siegemund said she was not nervous at all beforehand as she used every ounce of experience.
"I was very calm, and I was very... kind of in a good way excited, and in a good way tight. You need to have tension. There is nothing worse for me than to have no tension. I usually play my worst tennis then," the German explained.
She also suggested that, despite her age, her game can still match it with the best.
"Singles is not really my priority anymore, but at the same time, I know what I can do still. I know that if physically I'm healthy, that my game is there."
Aryna Sabalenka found herself in a tussle with Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, but was able to come out of it relatively unscathed. Sabalenka was clearly relieved to avoid a third set.
"I'm super happy to have finished this match in straight sets. She played incredible tennis, especially in the second set. I'm really happy I was able to turn around that set."
Jessica Pegula had no trouble making it through to the third-round, and was questioned about the longevity of players these days.
"I think people are taking care of their bodies more," said last year's US Open runner-up. "I think you just see that people aren't maybe pushing as hard when they're younger, knowing they have a lot of time to play. Or you see girls later on in their career that will play maybe an extra five years and have those breakthrough moments for a year or two or a tournament, because they know they don't feel like they have to retire at 30-years-old."
Mirra Andreeva had to go all the way to a match tiebreak to overcome Moyuka Uchijima.
Last year she bit her own arm due to the tension in a match against Diane Parry, on the same court, and she was having flashbacks during the match.
"Honestly, the only thing that I had in my mind is this court is cursed, and I don't want to play on that court again. I had this thought during the whole match," said the teenage sensation.
"I just tried to kind of let it out. I tried not to think about it. But still, it was there. I just had the thought that this stupid court, it's all because of this court."
Tomas Machac overcame Reilly Opelka’s booming serve to win a marathon five-setter. He divulged that the notebook he looks at during the match helps to settle him.
"I have some notes for some situations during the match, so when I need to calm down or think about something else, because on the court you really feel lots of stress, and there is lots of emotions and emotions [are] really changing. I had a feeling to take my notes and to read it and to calm down," he said.
One player who had no such problems was Carlos Alcaraz, breezing past Yoshihito Nishioka.
He was asked about another up-and-comer in Joao Fonseca.
"Just incredible. I mean, the way he played his first Grand Slam match against his first top-10, it's unbelievable. The way he approach the match, the way he handle everything, the nerves, the match in general, it's been fantastic.
"We're going to put the Joao Fonseca's name on the list of the best players in the world really soon."
One player excited to book their ticket into the third-round is Naomi Osaka after beating Karolína Muchová.
"I think there is (significance) for me, though I try not to think about it too much right now," Osaka shared. "It definitely was something that is a goal of mine, especially after last year. I wasn't able to beat a seed in a Grand Slam. I'm obviously very thankful that that happened so early this year."
Novak Djokovic made it through, despite spending some extra time on Rod Laver Arena.
"I wish maybe I stayed a set less on the court today," he admitted.
Playing two relatively unknown players in the opening rounds, Djokovic was asked how he and Andy Murray plan for that.
"I do it together with my coach. I mean, with Andy here, Andy has been spending quite a bit of time watching videos…. I like data. I like video, particularly visual preparation with the video analysis. He does that, too. I mean, at least what he told me throughout his career.
"We're matching pretty well there. We speak the same language, so to say. We understand each other very well."
Coco Gauff was asked about a wide range of things in her press conference. From the Tik Tok shutdown rumours…
"Personally, a lot of great stories I've heard are from TikTok and connecting with people has been TikTok…. there's like this pig online, his name is Merlin. He knows how to press buttons so he can talk. It's pretty funny. He's a pretty sassy pig."
…to the name everyone’s talking about, João Fonseca…
"I've been on the Fonseca train since early. I wasn't surprised by the result. I kind of called it. I said that he was going to beat Rublev," she claimed.
"Yeah, he's good. I don't know him at all personally. I've just been a fan of him for at least a year and a half, two years. It's great to see him on the biggest stage performing well.
"Hopefully he'll stay in his lane, not listen to the hype and enjoy it. He seems like a great personality."
Another day, another young gun taking out a seed. Jakub Menšík of the Czech Republic eliminated Casper Ruud in a stellar display.
He commented on whether the Next Gen finals have given the youngsters a head start on the rest of the field.
"The timing of the Next Gen Finals was before Christmas," he said. "Everyone was still in the pre-season. We were already playing [and] had [a] couple matches before the season started. That [helped] us a lot I guess, because all of us play really great matches."
Things didn’t quite go to plan for Australian Ajla Tomljanović, but she remained upbeat, even providing a hint of what might come once her career has ended.
"At the US Open I did a bit of commentating…. I like doing stuff on camera. I would love to have my own TV show. I know that's a dream. I'm a dreamer."
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