Australian Open 2026 Day 7 Summary

Day seven of the 2026 Australian Open saw Novak Djokovic add another historic marker to his career with his 400th Grand Slam match win, while defending champion Jannik Sinner navigated physical adversity and extreme conditions to extend his unbeaten run in Melbourne.

Lorenzo Musetti and Tomáš Macháč played in a four-and-a-half-hour slugfest, Taylor Fritz ended Stan Wawrinka’s farewell round in front of a raucous crowd, and Luciano Darderi continued his breakout fortnight by knocking out Karen Khachanov to ensure there are three Italians in the last sixteen.

Australian Open 2026 Results Day 7

Key matches

Jannik Sinner def. Eliot Spizzirri 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

Defending champion Jannik Sinner (No. 2 seed) rallied from a set down to defeat American qualifier Eliot Spizzirri in four sets at Rod Laver Arena, extending his AO winning streak to 17 matches.

Sinner hit 42 winners to Spizzirri’s 28, won 82% of first-serve points and broke serve four times after a shaky start (he faced early pressure and saved 3/5 break points in the opener).

The turning point came early in the third set, when Sinner began visibly cramping his legs and arms (limping, desperately stretching between points and barely able to serve or move), and he was broken to fall 3-1.

Play was halted under the Australian Open’s extreme heat policy (based on Wet Bulb Globe Temperature readings), allowing time to close the roof and activate cooling—a move that “saved” Sinner, as he acknowledged after the match.

He chose not to sit for most of the innings afterward to prevent the cramps from returning, and the cooler conditions swung his way; he immediately broke back and dominated from there.

For some fans, it was a “hell of a fight” and “survival mode”; for others, it was more a matter of the “funny timing” of the cap closure, which they saw as potentially beneficial to the top seed. Spizzirri accepted it according to the rules, but he is definitely tough there because he was in better physical shape and the conditions are the same for both players.

It was hot today. Started cramping a bit in the third set which then slowly went away after a while. I know my body a bit better now with some experience too, trying to handle certain situations a bit better. Got lucky today. When they closed the roof it takes some time. Tried to relax a bit. It helped. Also slightly changed the way to play certain points. It definitely helped me today. Sensing his gain.

Lorenzo Musetti def. Tomas Machac 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 5-7, 6-2

Italian No. 5 seed Lorenzo Musetti outlasted Tomas Machac in a roller-coaster five-seed, displaying his typical style in 4 hours and 27 minutes.

Musetti hit 55 winners (including 10 aces) against 53 unforced errors, breaking serve eight times while saving 10/15 break points.

Machac fought back to force a decider, but Musetti dominated the fifth (6-2), who has posted a career-best AO run, and he now faces Taylor Fritz in the last sixteen.

Novak Djokovic final Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(4)

Novak Djokovic (No. 4 seed, 38) hit another milestone, reaching his 102nd AO victory (equaling Roger Federer’s record for most in a single Slam) with a straight sets win over Botic van de Zandschulp.

This victory marked his 400th Grand Slam match win, the first player ever in the Open Era to reach that milestone (surpassing Federer on 369, Serena on 365)

Djokovic hit 27 winners to 23 unforced errors, won 77% (47/61) of service points overall (including strong first-serve dominance in the opener), converted 4/9 break points and saved two set points at 5-6 in the third before closing out the win in 2 hours and 44 minutes. The Serb faces Mensik next after he beat Ethan Quinn 6-2, 7-6(5), 7-6(5) at the Show Court Arena.

Ben Shelton def. Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-4, 7-6(5)

American No. 8 seed Ben Shelton cruised past Valentin Vacherot in straight sets, leaning on his massive serve.

Shelton blasted 15 aces (winning 81% of first-serve points), converted 2/4 break points and edged the third-set tiebreak 7-5 after some late Vacherot prowess.

Taylor Fritz def. Stan Wawrinka 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-4, 6-4

No. 9 seed Taylor Fritz ended 40-year-old Stan Wawrinka’s farewell AO run in four sets at a raucous John Cain Arena, where Wawrinka received a standing ovation after the match.

Fritz hit 59 winners (30 aces) to Wawrinka’s 45, winning 85% of first-serve points.

My thinking was what I’ve said, I’m not doing the year to just say goodbye to tournaments. It’s my senior year, so obviously when I’m going to lose in a tournament, it’s going to be a bye for this tournament, but my mindset is still a competitor and I always want to push myself. “I try to find the balance between the competition, to try to win, but at the same time to enjoy those moments with the fans, with the atmosphere. And here it was more than I could expect with the support. Every match was something really special, and I really appreciate it. Surprised by my level? No. Because I know that I trained, how much I got that level on myself to get a perfect start, to give myself a perfect level. time on the court against top players, so I had the chance to played five and spent a lot of time for me. This was a great two weeks, three weeks, between here and the United Cup. I can see that I’m doing well on the court. Stan at his tournament.

Luciano Darderi def. Karen Khachanov 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

no. 22 seed Luciano Darderi upset no. 15 Karen Khachanov in four sets, continuing her breakout form.

The Italian had a 9-29 record on hard courts prior to AO, but he’s had some impressive wins this week, and he now faces Sinner in R4.

Australian Open 2026 Day 8 Round of 16 matches