Carlos Alcaraz came through the first round of the Australian Open without any dramas by dispatching Adam Walton in straight sets.
Alcaraz went a break down in the second set, but responded quickly to take the set with a narrow tie-break.
The Spaniard nabbed a double break in the third and final set to confirm his place in the second round of the Australian Open.
Alcaraz is one of the favourites to win the Grand Slam, which would confirm him as the youngest player to win a Career Grand Slam.
Carlos Alcaraz joins elite list after defeating Adam Walton at the Australian Open
Alcaraz is yet to lose in the first round of a Grand Slam, even during the infancy of his career when he was playing as a teenager.
His victory over Walton ensured his 20th victory in a row of a first round of a Grand Slam, which has only been achieved by three other players.
Alcaraz joins elite company with the impressive record, as only Arthur Ashe, Bjorn Borg and Rafael Nadal have managed the same feat.
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The earliest Alcaraz has exited a Grand Slam is the second round, which he has suffered on three occasions.
Two of those defeats fell in 2021, when Alcaraz lost to Mikael Ymer at the Australian Open and to Daniil Medvedev at Wimbledon.
Alcaraz’s other early exits came against Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round of the 2024 US Open.
Carlos Alcaraz’s next opponent has now been confirmed
Alcaraz will continue his Australian Open campaign against Yannick Hanfmann in the second round, who defeated Zachary Svajda in his first match.
Hanfmann and Alcaraz have only ever played once on the ATP Tour, which went in the favour of the world number one.
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Alcaraz and Hanfmann played out a round of 32 China Open match, which Alcaraz won comfortably in straight sets.
The pair also met at a Challenger event in 2019, which too went the way of Alcaraz, so the German will have his work cut out in Melbourne.
The pair will play on Tuesday, 20 January, with the order of play yet to be confirmed by the Australian Open.
