For the first time in 20 years, four or fewer of the top eight seeds in the men's singles will progress to the fourth round of the Australian Open.

Daniil Medvedev's defeat to Sebastian Korda on Friday meant he joined Casper Ruud, Taylor Fritz and defending champion Rafael Nadal in heading home early from the season's first grand slam.

According to Opta, it is the first time since 2003 that the round of 16 in Melbourne will include four or fewer of the top eight players in the competition.  

Nine-time champion Novak Djokovic, meanwhile, is struggling with injury ahead of his third-round tie with Grigor Dimitrov on Saturday, while world number six and fifth seed Andrey Rublev faces a tough test against Dan Evans.

Stefanos Tsitsipas is sure of his place in round four after the Greek third seed beat Tallon Griekspoor in straight sets. Felix Auger-Aliassime will go up against Jiri Lehecka for a place in the last eight.

Casper Ruud was given a wake-up call ahead of the Australian Open as he was beaten by Laslo Djere in Auckland.

Ruud, who was beaten by Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final last year, was the top seed in New Zealand but came unstuck in the round of 16 on Wednesday.

Djere came from behind to defeat the Norwegian world number three 3-6 6-3 7-6 (7-3) and seal his place in the quarter-finals, where he will meet Constant Lestienne.

In the process, Djere recorded his first career victory over a top-five opponent.

Ruud must now shrug off the disappointment and switch his focus to Melbourne, where he will be hoping to break his grand slam duck.

David Goffin overcame qualifier Christopher Eubanks in straight sets to tee up a last-eight tie with Richard Gasquet, while Jenson Brooksby received a walkover due to Diego Schwartzman's injury.

Unlike Ruud, second seed Cameron Norrie did make it through. The world number 12, who spent the majority of his childhood in New Zealand, enjoyed a homecoming as he saw off Jiri Lehecka 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-3.

Norrie is unbeaten in 2023, having beat Alex De Minaur, Taylor Fritz and Rafael Nadal while in action for Great Britain at the United Cup.

"Obviously, there were [some] nerves in me, coming back to New Zealand I wanted to play well in front of everyone, and Jiri's a great player," said the 27-year-old.

"So, it wasn't easy, and credit to him in that second set for playing a really good tie-break. He really took it to me, but I really enjoyed the time on the court."

There was also a shock at the Adelaide International 2, where top seed Andrey Rublev succumbed to wildcard Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Rublev hit back after losing the first set but Kokkinakis ultimately prevailed 6-4 3-6 6-3.

Second seed Pablo Carreno Busta also fell out, losing to Kwon Soon-woo, leaving third seed Karen Khachanov as the favourite after his straight sets defeat of Marc-Andrea Huesler.

Mikael Ymer, Jack Draper, Miomir Kecmanovic, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Roberto Bautista Agut all progressed.

Novak Djokovic took just an hour and 15 minutes to win his first singles match in Australia since 2021, beating Constant Lestienne 6-3 6-2 at the Adelaide International on Tuesday.

Djokovic – who saw a three-year visa ban lifted in November – played with Vasek Pospisil in the doubles on Monday, but this was his first singles outing in the country since his vaccine-related absence from last year's Australian Open.

"For the first match [of the season] I can't complain," Djokovic said. "I played very well. I thought the first six games were very competitive and I have never faced him before.

"But once I made that break at 3-2 in the first set I thought I stepped it up and played really good tennis for the rest of the match."

Elsewhere in Adelaide, third seed Daniil Medvedev advanced after Lorenzo Sonego retired hurt with the Russian leading by a set, while sixth seed Jannik Sinner eased past Kyle Edmund 6-3 6-2.

Seventh seed Denis Shapovalov is also through after coming from a set down to beat Rinky Hijikata, but fourth seed Andrey Rublev is out after losing to Roberto Bautista Agut in three sets.

The Spaniard will face Sebastian Korda next after he beat Andy Murray 7-6 (7-3) 6-3, while eighth seed Karen Khachanov advanced after beating Pedro Cachin 6-2 6-4. 

At the Maharashtra Open in Pune, Aslan Karatsev had no problems seeing off Pablo Andujar 6-1 6-3, with the eighth seed set to face Tim van Rijthoven in the last 16 after the Dutchman beat Radu Albot 6-4 6-4.

There were also wins for Maximilian Marterer against Elias Ymer and Pedro Martinez against Ramkumar Ramanathan.

Wimbledon's ban on Russian and Belarusian players taking part last year was unjust and changed nothing regarding the war in Ukraine, believes Aryna Sabalenka.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last February, the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) barred players from both countries appearing at SW19 – a decision that saw the organisation fined by the ATP last month.

World number five Sabalenka joined the likes of Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Victoria Azarenka in being excluded, and she believes the ban was both unfair and pointless.

"This is really terrible because no one supports war – no one," Sabalenka told The Age of the ban. "I'm just really disappointed sport is somehow in politics. 

"We're just athletes playing their sport. That's it. We're not about politics. If all of us could do something [about the war], we would do it, but we have zero control.

"They banned us from Wimbledon, and what did it change? Nothing. [The Russian government] are still doing this, and this is the sad part of this situation."

The LTA is yet to say whether similar measures will be in place this year, and Sabalenka is hopeful of a return after missing the atmosphere at SW19 in 2022.

"I really missed the people because the atmosphere at Wimbledon is super amazing," she said. "You can feel these people really love tennis there, and I really miss them.

"I really hope that I'll play there, just because of the people, to feel this atmosphere. If they're going to ban us again... I don't care about Wimbledon's decision. The only thing I'll miss is the people."

Cameron Norrie is hoping Russian players will be allowed to return to Wimbledon in 2023, saying he wants "the best players in the world to be playing".

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine earlier this year, Russian players were banned from participating at SW19.

This meant the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev were not able to play and compete for the third grand slam of the year, which Novak Djokovic ended up winning for the seventh time.

The tournament was stripped of ranking points as a result of the ban on Russians, a decision that was met with much frustration from players.

Medvedev and Rublev finished a respective seventh and eighth in the year-end ATP rankings, and both took part in the ATP Finals in Turin.

Norrie hopes they are able to return to Wimbledon next year, telling reporters: "For me, I want the best players in the world to be playing.

"I felt last year was tough for those guys, especially for Daniil and for Andrey, who have a chance of winning Wimbledon.

"I know how much those guys sacrificed with their careers and their goals are obviously very high to be winning Slams.

"So I really did feel bad for those guys."

Casper Ruud swept through to a showdown with Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals, making light work of Andrey Rublev to reach the trophy match.

The 23-year-old Norwegian has enjoyed a stunning season, reaching two grand slam finals, and his 6-2 6-4 semi-final dismissal of Russian Rublev was impressively authoritative.

After Ruud coasted through the opening set, the occasion fell wholly flat when Ruud broke serve in the first game of the second, and did so again in the third game.

Rublev sat shaking his head at his chair in the break between games, also shrugging his shoulders towards his support team and looking lost for ideas.

He only began to make an impact after slipping 4-0 behind, and at 5-2 he broke Ruud's serve to narrow the gap and give the Turin crowd hope the contest could take off.

At 5-4, it was briefly tense, but Ruud served for the match for a second time and this time made it count, sealing victory with a brilliant backhand winner to become the first Scandinavian finalist at the ATP Finals since Stefan Edberg in 1990.

Ruud will overtake Rafael Nadal and end the year at number two in the ATP rankings should he carry off the title on Sunday; however, he has a 0-3 career record against Djokovic. Djokovic earlier battled past Taylor Fritz by winning a pair of tight tie-breaks to earn a straight-sets victory in the first of Saturday's semi-finals.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Ruud – 10/0
Rublev – 9/0

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Ruud – 20/0
Rublev – 19/1

BREAK POINTS WON

Ruud – 4/4
Rublev – 1/1

Andrey Rublev produced a stirring fightback to defeat Stefanos Tsitsipas and reach the last four of the ATP Finals for the first time on Friday.

Rublev had failed to make it out of the group stage on each of his first two appearances at the season-ending showpiece.

It initially looked as if he would fall short once again in this winner-take-all clash with Tsitsipas, with both men looking to join Novak Djokovic in progressing from the Red Group.

He was outclassed by Tsitsipas in the first set but showed the grit to recover from 0-30 down in the opening game of the second to find a crucial hold of serve.

That proved the catalyst for a stunning turnaround, as Rublev dominated with his fierce forehand and a series of superb passing shots to seal a 3-6 6-3 6-2 victory in Turin.

He will face Casper Ruud on Saturday for a place in the final.

Rublev told Prime Video of that semi-final encounter: "I'm really looking forward because Casper is such a nice person, great player, great fighter, he has achieved so many things this season, so it's going to be a really good challenge for me."

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Rublev – 10/2
Tsitsipas – 10/2

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Rublev – 36/22
Tsitsipas – 25/12

BREAK POINTS WON

Rublev – 3/5
Tsitsipas – 1/3

Novak Djokovic boosted his hopes of claiming a record-equalling sixth ATP Finals title by clinching a semi-final spot with a 6-4 6-1 win over Andrey Rublev in Turin.

Having overcome Stefanos Tsitsipas in his opening red group match, Djokovic endured spells of pressure from the sixth seed throughout Wednesday's opening set before clinching the all-important break in the 10th game.

The 21-time grand slam winner found the going far easier in the second set, breaking Rublev's serve at the first opportunity before repeating the trick in the sixth game.

Djokovic's backhand was particularly impressive as he dominated proceedings from the baseline, while the Serbian won 94 per cent of points behind his first serve and did not give up a single break point during the match.

The 35-year-old only committed six unforced errors en route to his 68-minute victory, as he joined Casper Ruud in sealing a place in the final four in Turin. 

Djokovic has now won his opening two group matches in four of his last five campaigns at the ATP Finals, and he appears the strong favourite to equal Roger Federer's record of six titles at the competition.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Djokovic – 12/0
Rublev – 10/1

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Djokovic – 19/6
Rublev – 18/17

BREAK POINTS WON

Djokovic – 3/4
Rublev – 0/0

Andrey Rublev opened his ATP Finals campaign with a gripping 6-7 (7-9) 6-3 7-6 (9-7) success over compatriot Daniil Medvedev in Turin.

The sixth seed came from behind to beat his fellow Russian in a match lasting over two and a half hours to put himself top of the Red Group, with the pool's other two players, Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas, playing later on Monday.

Rublev got off to a fast start, securing a break to put himself 4-1 up in the first set. However, Medvedev saw off two set points to take it to a tie-break, before fending off five more set points on his way to taking an extraordinary opener.

World number seven Rublev hit back with two breaks in a strong second set to level the match, Medvedev not helping himself with six double faults.

Medvedev, the fourth seed, cut down the errors in a tight final set that did not see a solitary break of serve as a tie-break was required to settle an absorbing contest.

But after a remarkable final stand from Medvedev that saw him save four match points, Rublev finally got over the line make a winning start.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Medvedev - 24/8

Rublev - 9/1

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Medvedev - 46/26

Rublev - 38/24

BREAK POINTS WON

Medvedev - 1/2

Rublev - 3/9

In recent years, the notable absentee at the ATP Finals has been Roger Federer, with his last appearance in the tournament coming in 2019.

The lack of Federer at the showpiece event will be felt even more apparent this year after the Swiss maestro retired from tennis in September, though it is the absence of a player at the other end of his career that is more relevant in Turin.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz had to withdraw from the tournament after suffering an abdominal tear, which means his status at the top of the men's game is in jeopardy.

Rafael Nadal has spoken well of his 19-year-old compatriot in the past, but is not ready to pass the torch just yet, and could even topple Alcaraz from his number one spot.

The 22-time grand slam champion has finished as year-end number one five times previously, most recently in 2019. Should he accomplish the feat again this year it would put him in joint-second for most year-end finishes at the top of the ATP Rankings (since 1973) along with Pete Sampras (six).

In order to do so, Nadal will need to win the tournament, something he has never done before.

However, he comes into his 11th appearance in good form, and has won 32 per cent of his return games in 2022, the highest percentage by any player this year, and has converted 43.8 per cent of his break points in 2022, the third best amongst all players.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, meanwhile, is the other competitor who can knock Alcaraz off top spot, though his task to do so is a little more complicated as he needs to win every match on the way to the title in Turin. 

No player has played more matches in 2022 than Tsitsipas (80), 21 on clay, 11 on grass and 48 on hard courts; he has won 59 of them and lost 21.

Should neither man win at the Pala Alpitour, Alcaraz will breathe a sigh of relief and earn his first year-end number one finish, having taken his place after winning the US Open in September.

Nadal has been drawn into the Green Group with Casper Ruud, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Taylor Fritz, while Tsitsipas will be in the Red Group alongside Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic can equal Federer record

One man surprisingly unable to end the year as number one is Djokovic, despite having done so on more occasions than anyone else in history (seven).

However, the 21-time grand slam champion can still make his mark in Italy.

Djokovic has had an up-and-down year, only playing in two of the four grand slams due to his vaccination status, though he was able to win Wimbledon for the seventh time, beating Nick Kyrgios in the final.

Should the Serbian go all the way and lift what would be his sixth ATP Finals title, he will go level with Federer for most victories since the tournament began in 1970.

Among the eight participating players in this year's tournament, Djokovic has won 87 per cent of his service games in 2022, the best percentage among these players and the sixth overall.

It would be quite the ending to the year for Djokovic, who finds himself in the unusual position of sitting eighth in the world rankings, and at the age of 35, who knows how many more appearances he will make at the event?

Strong field promises fireworks

As is the intent of the format, the ATP Finals should be a tightly-contested few days as the best men's players in the world come together.

Ruud will be looking to add to an already impressive season, having reached two grand slam finals and winning three tour-level titles, while Fritz is aiming to carry on the fine lineage of American players to have won the tournament.

Players from the United States have won the ATP finals 16 times, with Sampras and Ivan Lendl winning five of them each. It is the most by any country and 10 more than next best Switzerland (six, all Federer) and Germany (also six, three wins for Boris Becker, one for Michael Stich and two for last year's champion, Alexander Zverev).

Auger-Aliassime has had a strong end to the year, beating Djokovic at the Laver Cup before winning three titles in as many weeks in Florence, Antwerp and Basel.

Only John Isner (895) has recorded more aces in 2022 than Auger-Aliassime, who has registered 852 in total, averaging 10.9 per match.

"All the players who participate [at the ATP Finals], I have already faced them, I have beaten them," the Canadian recently said. "So for me, there's no reason why I can't show up to this tournament with the aim of winning it."

Medvedev was world number one as recently as September but enters this tournament in fifth, though he did win the Vienna ATP 500 event last month, while his first opponent in Turin, Rublev, enters with a 2022 record of 49-18, looking for his second straight 50-win season.

Whoever comes out on top at this year's ATP Finals, the race for supremacy in 2023 promises to be as delightfully chaotic.

Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud were made to work hard for victory in their opening matches at the Paris Masters on Tuesday.

For Djokovic, a 10th win in a row came in an absorbing battle with his Paris-born American opponent Maxime Cressy, who displayed a typically aggressive approach on serve, with 15 aces and 10 double faults overall.

Djokovic was strong on his own delivery, however, with the Serbian losing just six points on serve and not facing a break point on his way to a 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 victory.

"I'm happy with the way I played," Djokovic said. "When chances were presented, I was able to use them, even though I did have some missed break points.

"But it was very challenging, first match with a guy who serves extremely well and strong and fast.

"He's comfortable coming to the net. It's nice to see. I think he's the only guy that really comes to the net after every first and second serve. I think it's good for tennis to see that, particularly in these modern times when most of the players are playing from back of the court. He's a very athletic guy.

"It's difficult to play him definitely in these kind of conditions where balls are flying through the court and it's quicker than it was last year. So tough to break.

"But I didn't make too many unforced errors. I'm very pleased with the way I served, with the way I was holding my service games. Just the way I felt, the way I played, it was all positive."

Third seed Ruud ground out a 6-1 7-6 (9-7) victory against Frenchman Richard Gasquet, with the Norwegian saving three of four break points in what proved to be a tightly fought contest.

Mistakes from Gasquet were ultimately costly, the veteran having 10 unforced errors in the second set compared to Ruud's two.

Seventh seed Andrey Rublev was also victorious, the Russian winning 6-2 6-3 against American John Isner, while the British duo of Jack Draper and Dan Evans progressed to the last-32 stage, beating Arthur Rinderknech and Brandon Nakashima respectively.

Stefanos Tsitsipas crashed out of the Vienna Open after losing in a dramatic third-set tie-break against Borna Coric, who claimed his third successive win over the Greek ace.

The second seed was the highest-profile casualty in the Austrian capital on Thursday, as he succumbed to the Croatian once more 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4).

Coric rescued six match points before stunning Tsitsipas at the 2020 US Open, while he also triumphed when they collided in the Cincinnati showpiece in August.

The world number 27's chances of completing a hat-trick of victories appeared bleak at a set and break down, but he rallied to force a decider that went the distance, before holding his nerve for another notable win.

Coric's reward is a quarter-final clash with Hubert Hurkacz, who boosted his chances of qualifying for next month's ATP Finals with a 7-5 4-6 6-3 win over Emil Ruusuvuori.

Daniil Medvedev advanced to the last eight after a 6-3 6-3 victory over home favourite Dominic Thiem. Next up for the top seed is Jannik Sinner after the Italian saw off Francisco Cerundolo 7-5 6-3.

Third seed Andrey Rublev's ATP Finals hopes were dented after a 6-3 6-4 defeat by Grigor Dimitrov, who will play Marcos Giron after the American overcame seventh seed Cameron Norrie in straight sets.

Over in Basel, third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime required just 49 minutes to complete a commanding 6-1 6-0 rout of Miomir Kecmanovic for his 10th straight ATP win.

Meanwhile, Stockholm champion Holger Rune continued his momentum by recording a seventh straight victory after seeing off Ugo Humbert 6-4 6-2.

Sixth seed Roberto Bautista Agut enjoyed a straight-sets win over three-time grand slam champion Andy Murray to set up a clash with home favourite Stan Wawrinka, who outlasted Brandon Nakashima in a deciding set.

Andrey Rublev defeated Sebastian Korda in straight sets in Sunday's Gijon Open final to land his 12th ATP Tour title.

The Russian had already prevailed in Belgrade, Dubai and Marseille this year and added another crown to his collection with a 6-2 6-3 victory against Korda in 75 minutes.

Top seed Rublev had dropped only one set in his three matches en route to the final and impressed against Korda with 29 winners, three breaks and just four unforced errors.

Korda, seeking a second Tour-level trophy following success in Parma last year, had his serve broken in the fourth and eighth games of the opening set.

Some heavy-hitting exchanges kept spectators gripped, though Rublev proved too strong for Korda in the second set and earned the only break in the sixth game.

Rublev got over the line with his fourth match point and remains sixth in the chase for an ATP Finals spot, with four of those ahead of him already qualified, along with Novak Djokovic. 

Andrey Rublev set up a final meeting with Sebastian Korda at the Gijon Open, overcoming Dominic Thiem in straight sets in the last four.

The world number nine battled through an up-and-down opener before remaining patient to seal the second set and the match on Thiem's serve, taking a 6-4 6-4 victory.

Russian Rublev has now won eight successive sets of tennis against the 2020 US Open champion, and he is one win away from his fourth title of 2022 after triumphs in Belgrade, Dubai and Marseille.

Speaking on court after the win, Rublev said: "I was lucky I played a really good game and Dominic helped me out a little bit.

"Then I felt more confident and I was able to win in two sets, which was the most important thing. This week I have been playing really well, and I'll try to show my best tennis of the week tomorrow."

Korda will be Rublev's opponent on Sunday after the American saw off France's Arthur Rinderknech for a 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 win.

Meanwhile, at the Firenze Open, top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime saw off home favourite Lorenzo Musetti 6-2 6-3, moving one step closer to a second ATP Tour title.

The Canadian will face JJ Wolf in the final in Florence, after the American clinched a 6-4 6-4 win over Sweden's Mikael Ymer.

Andy Murray's run at the Gijon Open came to an end with a three-set loss to Sebastian Korda on Friday, dashing his hopes of a semi-final appearance in Spain.

Murray earned his fourth Tour-level quarter-final spot of 2022 by beating Pedro Cachin, but American Korda defeated the former world number one 6-4 1-6 6-1.

Korda will face Arthur Rinderknech in the last four after he upset second seed Pablo Carreno Busta, taking an epic final-set tie-break to triumph 4-6 6-3 7-6 (18-16).

The other side of the draw will play host to an enticing semi-final meeting between Dominic Thiem and top seed Andrey Rublev after they secured straight-sets wins over Francisco Cerundolo and Tommy Paul respectively.

Thiem said after his 6-4 6-3 triumph over Cerundolo: "From the first match on, I have felt great on this court.

"It is very important for me as I am trying to climb up the rankings. The semi-finals at an ATP event is helping a lot."

Meanwhile, top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime beat Brandon Nakashima 6-3 6-4 to reach the Firenze Open semi-finals, where he will face home favourite Lorenzo Musetti.

The third seed from Italy downed Mackenzie McDonald 6-3 6-2, but fellow seed Alexander Bublik went down 3-6 7-5 6-1 to J. J. Wolf.