Coco Gauff advanced to the Australian Open second round, defeating Kamilla Rakhimova 6-2, 6-3. The third seed battled familiar serve struggles, committing six double faults in the first set. Despite her powerful groundstrokes, the American has never progressed past the semifinals in Melbourne.

Gauff’s serve has been a persistent challenge; she led the WTA Tour with 431 double faults in 2025. She took a comfort break to practice her serve mid-match. Her next opponent is Olga Danilovic, who upset Venus Williams in the first round, eliminating a potential all-American clash.

Elsewhere, top seed Aryna Sabalenka survived a tricky opener, while former champion Sofia Kenin continued her Melbourne struggles, losing in the first round for the fifth consecutive time. Peyton Stearns cruised to victory with 15 aces, setting up a match against Petra Marcinko.