Australian Open wildcard ‘not fixing any limits’ after reaching second week
Arthur Cazaux has reached the second week of the Australian Open on his first attempt, beating Tallon Griekspoor in straight sets to do so.
Cazaux had only ever won one main tour match prior to this week, but has now won three consecutive Grand Slam matches in Melbourne.
The French wildcard beat Griekspoor, 6-3 6-3 6-1, to back up his previous win over eighth seed Holger Rune.
As a result, Cazaux has become the first wildcard since Lleyton Hewitt (2012) to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open.
While the 21-year-old appears to be enjoying his achievement, he does not seem fully satisfied just yet, “No, it sound great. Sound great, of course. But yeah, you know, I’m focused on the next. I hope the tournament will continue for me. I’m not fixing any limits, and I will see what’s gonna happen.”
He continued, “Yes, I know I could play this kind of level, but I never prove it, you know, in a real match. So yeah, in me I was confident, but, you know, to prove it in the first round gave me more confident, and yes, now I know I can beat this kind of player during real match. And now, you know, I’m gonna repeat, but I was ready for everyone and even more ready now in my head and in my game.”
Living his wildest dreams ??@ArthurCazaux #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/9O4ldzHpx2
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) January 20, 2024
Cazaux will now play ninth seed Hubert Hurkacz on Monday, with both players looking to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time.
And the world No.108 revealed that he is not feeling any pressure ahead of the biggest match of his career, “Not really, not really. No, because I work very hard in my head, in my mental, and like I said before, I’m ready to fight everyone. I’m ready to fight in every match.
“You know, I’m here to give everything on court. I can play sometimes I play bad; sometimes I play good. You know, it doesn’t matter. You know, the only thing important is to give everything on court. That’s my rules. Now I’m not feeling any pressure.”
Inside the baseline…
It has been a very impressive and surprising week from Arthur Cazaux, who had not even played qualifying at the Australian Open before. Due to his success down under, the Frenchman is confirmed to move inside the top 100 for the first time in his career and could go as high as the top 60 if he was to beat Hubert Hurkacz on Monday.
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