Leylah Fernandez eliminated from Australian Open in straight sets by Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff still hasn't lost a match or even at set at the Australian Open — or, actually, this season. She moved into the fourth round at Melbourne Park with a straightforward 6-4, 6-2 victory over 2021 U.S. Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez on Friday night.

Gauff, from the U.S., needed just 75 minutes to get past Canada's Fernandez, a left-hander who was seeded 30th. Gauff was broken just once and compiled an 18-7 advantage in total winners.

It was Gauff's second recent win over Fernandez, from Laval, Que., after beating her in the United Cup team competition. That is part of Gauff's 8-0 record, 16-0 in sets, so far this season.

That made this one "harder," Gauff said, "because she knows what to expect, and I definitely think she played a little bit different today."

That prompted Gauff to switch some things up, too, as she seeks her second major championship. She's tweaked her coaching staff and altered her serving and forehand mechanics a bit after being a tad disappointed with her Grand Slam performances in 2024 — even if the season did end with a title at the WTA Finals.

"Tennis feels so high stakes, but it's really not. I'm so lucky to do what I do — also get paid doing it," said Gauff, a 20-year-old from Florida.

"My biggest thing I learned last year is just not to take anything for granted," Gauff said, "and just realized this time is going to go by so fast. ... I'm just trying to enjoy it while I'm here."

Ottawa's Gabriela Dabrowski and her New Zealand teammates Erin Routliffe have reached the third round of women's doubles in Melbourne.

The second-seeded duo earned a three-set win (4-6, 6-3, 6-4) over Britain's Maia Lumsden and Czechia's Anna Siskova.

Dabrowski and Routliffe, the 2023 US Open champions and 2024